M/S. Sakshi Motors vs. The Union Of INDIA And 2 Ors.

Held

The Court held that if there is a provision for electronic filing of returns and the uploading could not be done in time due to technical glitches, the concerned individual or firm should not be put at a disadvantage. The Court noted that the petitioner was ready to file TRAN-2 electronically but could not due to portal issues, leading them to seek manual submission, which was previously considered by the Court. The Court further acknowledged the respondents' submission that the GST Council had been apprised of the issue and agreed that the GST Council would examine the petitioner's grievance. The Court directed that the GST Council would allow the petitioner to file the return either electronically or manually, as they decide, to prevent the petitioner from being deprived of their due input tax credit. This exercise was to be completed within three weeks from the receipt of a certified copy of the order. The Court also directed the respondents to re-open web portals enabling the petitioner to upload its Form GST TRAN-1 electronically or allow manual filing, to be undertaken within three months.

Facts

The petitioner, M/s. Sakshi Motors, a proprietorship concern, filed a writ petition challenging the respondent authorities' refusal to allow them to submit the GST TRAN-2 return. This followed an earlier writ petition (WP(C) No. 4901/2018) where the petitioner had challenged the non-acceptance of their GST TRAN-2 return by the GST portal and the non-consideration of their complaints. In the previous petition, the Court had directed the authorities to facilitate the submission of Form GST TRAN-2, either electronically or manually. However, the petitioner alleged that the authorities subsequently refused to accept the form, stating the petitioner had not demonstrated genuine difficulty in uploading it. The petitioner argued that proving technical glitches in the portal was inherently difficult and that this refusal would deprive them of input tax credit.

Key Issues

1. Whether the respondent authorities were justified in refusing to allow the petitioner to submit Form GST TRAN-2, either electronically or manually, despite a previous High Court order directing facilitation of such submission? (Question of law and fact, concerning the interpretation and implementation of the Court's previous order and the provisions related to filing GST returns). Petitioner's Arguments: The petitioner contended that the authorities' refusal contravened the specific directions of this Court in a prior writ petition. They argued that it would be impossible to definitively prove technical glitches in the GST portal, and that the refusal to accept the TRAN-2 form would result in the loss of eligible input tax credit. They relied on the principle that assessees should not be disadvantaged due to portal malfunctions. Revenue's Arguments: The respondents, through an affidavit-in-opposition, stated that the Commissioner of GST examined the grievances and found that while the petitioner filed TRAN-1 successfully, they did not submit the information correctly and did not revise it within the stipulated time. The matter was forwarded to higher authorities, who indicated that re-opening the portal or allowing manual declarations due to technical glitches might not be in consonance with the statutory framework of GST law.