M/S Rasandik Engineering Industries INDIA LTD vs. Commissioner Of Goods And Services Tax Gurugram

Held

The Court dismissed the Review Application. The Court found no ground to review its earlier judgment dated 04.11.2019. The reasoning was twofold: Firstly, the Court found that the review application was an attempt to re-agitate the matter, which is not permissible under the parameters of seeking a review. Secondly, the Court reiterated its findings from paragraph 9 of the judgment dated 04.11.2019, which held that unutilized credit arising from duties/taxes paid under erstwhile Acts is a vested right that cannot be taken away on procedural or technical grounds, especially given the complexities of the electronic GST regime for many individuals. The Court acknowledged that its findings were fortified by the Gujarat High Court's view but also relied on the Delhi High Court's similar view. The Court held that the stay on implementation by the Gujarat High Court in its review proceedings was not a sufficient ground for this Court to review its own judgment. The Court suggested that the appropriate remedy for the Revenue would be to approach the Supreme Court by filing an appeal. The Court also noted the dismissal of the Revenue's SLP by the Supreme Court. The operative direction was the dismissal of the Review Application.

Facts

This case involves a Review Application (RA-CW No. 80 of 2020) filed by the Commissioner of Goods & Service Tax, Gurugram (the respondent/revenue) seeking to review a final judgment and order dated 04.11.2019 passed by the Punjab & Haryana High Court. The original writ petition (CWP No. 1976 of 2019) was filed by Rasandik Engineering Industries Pvt. Ltd. (the petitioner). The High Court had allowed the writ petition, directing the respondent to permit the petitioner to file Form 'TRAN-1' by an extended date. The Revenue's review application was filed with a delay of eighteen days, which was condoned. The Court noted that a previous review application by the Union of India (UOI) in a similar matter (M/s. Ajay Hardware Industries Pvt. Ltd. vs. Union of India and others) had been dismissed on 29.11.2019. Furthermore, the Revenue's Special Leave Petition (SLP) against a related order was also dismissed by the Supreme Court on 28.02.2020.

Key Issues

1. Whether the Court should review its final judgment and order dated 04.11.2019, which allowed the petitioner to file Form 'TRAN-1' by an extended date, considering that the Gujarat High Court's judgment, relied upon by this Court, was itself under review with a stay on implementation. Petitioner's Arguments: Not recorded as the petitioner was not represented, and the judgment focuses on the respondent's arguments and the Court's previous findings. Revenue's Arguments: The primary thrust of the review application was that the Gujarat High Court's judgment, upon which this Court relied, was under review, and the Gujarat High Court had stayed its implementation. The Revenue sought to re-agitate the matter based on this development.