Rabindra Nath Kundu vs. State Of West Bengal And Ors.

Held

The Court considered the petitioner's prayer and allowed it. The Court directed that the petitioner shall prefer an appeal before the Appellate Tribunal within a period of four weeks from the date of the order. The period during which the writ petition was pending before the High Court was to be excluded for computing the limitation period for filing the appeal. The Court clarified that if the appeal is not filed within the specified period, the Tribunal would be at liberty not to entertain the hearing of the appeal on merits. Furthermore, if the appeal is filed within time, the Tribunal was requested to complete the entire proceedings expeditiously, peremptorily within a period of four months from the date of filing the appeal. Until a decision is taken by the Tribunal, the respondent authorities were restrained from taking any coercive action against the petitioner in terms of the notices dated 26.08.2025 and 22.09.2025. The writ petition was disposed of with these observations and directions. No issue was expressly left undecided.

Facts

The petitioner, Rabindra Nath Kundu, filed a writ petition before the High Court at Calcutta. The petitioner's primary submission was that since the Appellate Tribunal has been constituted and is functional, the writ petition should be transferred to the Appellate Tribunal to prefer an appeal under Section 112 of the CGST Act, 2017/WBGST Act, 2017. The State of West Bengal and other respondents were represented. The writ petition was filed challenging certain actions or orders, though the specific order or action and the authority that passed it are not detailed in the provided text. The amount in dispute is also not mentioned.

Key Issues

1. Whether the writ petition should be transferred to the Appellate Tribunal for preferring an appeal under Section 112 of the CGST Act, 2017/WBGST Act, 2017, given the Tribunal's functional status? Petitioner's Argument: The petitioner contended that the Appellate Tribunal is now constituted and functional, and therefore, the appropriate forum for appeal is the Tribunal, not the High Court through a writ petition. They sought the transfer of the matter to the Tribunal to file an appeal. Revenue/State's Argument: The judgment does not record any specific argument from the State or revenue authorities regarding the transfer of the writ petition. Their participation was noted, but their stance on the petitioner's prayer is not detailed.