Mali Tractors Private Limited vs. The Union Of INDIA

Held

The Court held that the Appellate Authority erred in dismissing the petitioner's appeal for the 2017-18 assessment year based on the assessment order's date. Following the reasoning of a previous Division Bench judgment (Annexure-P/23), the Court found no rationale for the 31.03.2023 cut-off date in Notification No. 53/2023. The Court noted that the notification itself was issued on 02.11.2023, and orders passed within three months prior should have been considered for beneficial treatment. Therefore, the Court set aside the appellate order for 2017-18 and directed the Appellate Authority to resume the appeal and dispose of it on its merits. The same reasoning was applied to the 2018-19 assessment year, setting aside the appellate order and directing the Appellate Authority to hear and dispose of the appeal on merits. The petitioner was directed to appear before the Appellate Authority on 06.01.2025.

Facts

The petitioner, Mali Tractors Private Limited, challenged assessment orders for the years 2017-18 and 2018-19. For the 2017-18 assessment year, the petitioner first received a notice under Section 60(1) of the Central/Bihar Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, due to discrepancies in GSTR-1 and GSTR-3B returns, attributed to double entry of invoices at the commencement of the GST regime. Proceedings were closed. Subsequently, a notice under Section 73(1) was dropped, and an audit notice was also accepted. However, a further notice led to an assessment order dated 23.06.2023. The petitioner did not appeal this order within the stipulated four months. A subsequent notification provided a window for appeals for orders passed before 31.03.2023, with a condition of paying admitted tax plus 12.5% of the demand. The petitioner filed an appeal on 20.01.2024, complying with the payment condition, but it was dismissed as the assessment order was dated after 31.03.2023. The petitioner also challenged the assessment order for 2018-19.

Key Issues

1. Whether the Appellate Authority erred in dismissing the petitioner's appeal for the 2017-18 assessment year solely on the ground that the assessment order was passed after 31.03.2023, despite the petitioner complying with the conditions of Notification No. 53/2023 (Central Tax) and a previous Division Bench judgment permitting appeals for orders passed after the cut-off date? Petitioner's Argument: The petitioner argued that the cut-off date of 31.03.2023 in Notification No. 53/2023 was arbitrary and that a Division Bench of the High Court had previously allowed appeals for orders passed after this date, following similar reasoning that there was no rationale for the cut-off. They contended that their appeal should be considered on merits. Revenue's Argument: The judgment does not record any specific arguments made by the revenue or state respondents regarding this issue.