Commissioner Central CGST And Central Excise Gandhinagar vs. Hitachi Home And Life Solution(INDIA) LTD

Held

The Court granted permission to the Department to withdraw the Tax Appeal. The reasoning behind this decision was based on the Department's submission that the tax effect involved was below the monetary threshold set by the CBIC circular dated 11.07.2018. This circular provides the criteria for the Department to file and pursue appeals before the High Court. By allowing the withdrawal, the Court acknowledged the Department's adherence to its own administrative guidelines regarding the financial limits for litigation. The appeal was disposed of accordingly, meaning no decision on the merits of the underlying tax dispute was made. The operative direction was the disposal of the Tax Appeal as withdrawn.

Facts

The Commissioner of Central CGST and Central Excise, Gandhinagar, filed a Tax Appeal before the High Court of Gujarat at Ahmedabad. The appeal was against Hitachi Home and Life Solution (India) Ltd. The Department, through its counsel, filed a note seeking withdrawal of the Tax Appeal. The reason cited for withdrawal was that the tax effect involved in the appeal was below the minimum threshold limit stipulated by the Central Board of Indirect Tax & Customs (CBIC) in its circular dated 11.07.2018, which governs the filing and maintenance of appeals by the Department before the High Court.

Key Issues

1. Whether the Tax Appeal filed by the Department is maintainable before the High Court given that the tax effect is below the threshold limit prescribed by the CBIC circular dated 11.07.2018? Petitioner's Argument: The Department argued that the tax effect in the present appeal is below the minimum threshold limit specified by the CBIC circular dated 11.07.2018. This circular provides guidelines for the Department to prefer and maintain appeals before the High Court. Therefore, the Department sought permission to withdraw the appeal. Respondent's Argument: No specific argument was recorded for the respondent (Hitachi Home and Life Solution (India) Ltd.) as the Department itself sought withdrawal of the appeal.