Vaishno Polymers vs. Commissioner Of Central Goods And Services Tax And Another

Held

The Court noted the respondent's submission that the petitioner could file a separate application for the refund of August 2017, along with its GSTR-1 return. Furthermore, the respondent indicated that separate applications for the remaining two quarters (October 2017 to December 2017 and January 2018 to March 2018) could be filed along with the respective returns. The respondent assured that upon filing these applications, they would be processed. The Court directed the petitioner to file its refund applications within two weeks from the date of the order, and these applications would be processed by the respondent within six weeks thereafter. The petition was disposed of in terms of these directions.

Facts

The petitioner, Vaishno Polymers, filed a writ petition before the Delhi High Court challenging the non-processing of its refund claims for Input Tax Credit (ITC) for the period July 2017 to March 2018. The petitioner had filed its GST returns on a quarterly basis. However, it submitted its refund applications on a monthly basis. The respondent, Commissioner of Central Goods and Services Tax, contended that refund applications should also have been filed quarterly. While refunds for July 2017 and September 2017 were processed, the application for August 2017 remained unprocessed. The Court sought instructions from the respondent regarding the procedure for filing refund applications.

Key Issues

1. Whether the petitioner was required to file its refund applications on a quarterly basis, corresponding to its quarterly return filing, or if monthly applications were permissible, given the discrepancy in processing. The petitioner argued that its grievance was addressed by the respondent's submission that a separate application for August 2017 could be filed along with GSTR-1, and similar applications for the subsequent two quarters could be filed with the respective returns. The respondent, through its counsel, submitted that it had obtained instructions and confirmed that the petitioner could file a separate application for August 2017, and also file separate applications for the quarters October-December 2017 and January-March 2018 along with the returns. The respondent assured that these applications would be processed upon filing.