Oyster Steel And Iron Private Limited vs. Assisstant Commissioner Of Central Goods And Service Tax Delhi East Range 151

Held

The Delhi High Court disposed of the petition by issuing several directions. The Court directed the respondent to process the petitioner's application for cancellation of registration within four weeks from the date of the order. Crucially, the cancellation of GST was to take effect from December 31, 2019, the date from which the petitioner had sought cancellation. The Court further held that if the petitioner's application for cancellation was accepted, any returns filed by the petitioner for the period after December 31, 2019, would be considered void and non-est. To ensure no further delay, the petitioner was directed to provide a hard copy of its application to the concerned authority and file a fresh application seeking cancellation of registration with effect from December 31, 2019. The petitioner was also instructed to communicate to the concerned authority if the portal did not accept the fresh application. The ratio decidendi is that where a taxpayer has demonstrably applied for cancellation of GST registration and the delay in processing is attributable to technical glitches on the GST portal, the cancellation should be granted retrospectively from the date of the initial application, and subsequent filings should be treated as void.

Facts

The petitioner, Oyster Steel and Iron Private Limited, filed a writ petition before the Delhi High Court seeking directions for the cancellation of its GSTIN effective from December 31, 2019. The petitioner claims to have filed an application for cancellation of its GSTIN on January 11, 2020, but it was not processed. Consequently, the petitioner continued to receive notices for non-filing of returns, which it complied with. A screenshot from the GST portal was provided as evidence of the application filing, showing ARN No. AA0701200230148. The respondent, Assistant Commissioner of Central Goods and Service Tax, Delhi East Range, stated that their portal did not reflect any pending application, suggesting a technical glitch, and that a ticket had been raised to address this issue. The respondent did not dispute the screenshot.

Key Issues

1. Whether the petitioner's application for cancellation of GSTIN, filed on January 11, 2020, should be processed and given effect from December 31, 2019, despite the respondent's portal not reflecting any pending application due to a potential technical glitch. Petitioner's Contention: The petitioner argued that it had duly filed an application for cancellation of its GSTIN on January 11, 2020, and provided evidence in the form of a portal screenshot. It contended that the non-processing of this application by the respondent led to continued notices for non-filing of returns, which it had to comply with. The petitioner sought a direction for the cancellation to be effective from December 31, 2019, as originally requested. Respondent's Contention: The respondent, through its counsel, submitted that there appeared to be a technical glitch as their portal did not show any pending application. They confirmed that a ticket had been raised to resolve this technical issue. However, the respondent did not dispute the authenticity of the screenshot provided by the petitioner showing the application filing.