Maruti Store vs. State Of Bihar
Facts
The petitioner, Maruti Store, is aggrieved by the dismissal of its appeal filed under Section 107(4) of the Bihar Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 (BGST Act). The appeal was against an assessment order dated 13.06.2023, passed under Section 74 of the BGST Act. The appeal was dismissed for being filed beyond the prescribed period of four months. The petitioner contended that the appeal should be considered under an amnesty scheme, citing Circular No. 53 of 2023, which allowed consideration of appeals filed beyond the statutory period upon payment of 2.5% of the balance dues, even for orders passed after 31.03.2023. The petitioner relied on two previous judgments (Annexures-6 and 7) where similar appeals were entertained under the amnesty scheme.
Held
The Court held that the writ petition is not maintainable and dismissed the same. The Court noted that the amnesty scheme, which allowed for the consideration of appeals filed beyond the statutory period upon payment of 2.5% of the balance dues, was only valid up to 31.01.2024. The Court observed that the two cited judgments (Annexures-6 and 7) relied upon by the petitioner were passed on 30.11.2023 and 07.12.2023 respectively, during which period the amnesty scheme was valid and in vogue. However, the present writ petition was filed for consideration of an appeal after the amnesty scheme had expired. Therefore, the Court found no reason to entertain the writ petition. The operative direction was to dismiss the writ petition.
Key Issues
1. Whether the petitioner's appeal, filed beyond the statutory period of four months under Section 107(4) of the BGST Act, is maintainable under the amnesty scheme provided by Circular No. 53 of 2023, despite the assessment order being dated after 31.03.2023? Petitioner's arguments: The petitioner argued that the amnesty scheme, as evidenced by Circular No. 53 of 2023, permits consideration of appeals even if the assessment order was passed after 31.03.2023, provided the appeal is filed while the scheme is in vogue and the conditions are met. They relied on two High Court judgments (Annexures-6 and 7) where appeals against orders passed after 31.03.2023 were entertained under the amnesty scheme. The petitioner highlighted that the amnesty scheme was in effect until 31.01.2024. Revenue's arguments: The judgment does not record any specific arguments made by the revenue or state respondents.
Sections Cited
Section 107(4), Section 74
AI-generated summary — verify with the full judgment below
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA Civil Writ Juri iction Case No.2441 of 2024 ====================================================== Maruti Store a proprietary concern having its office at Hanuman Market, Dharamshala Road, Triveniganj, Supaul, through its Proprietor, Pallav Kumar Agarwal (Male) (aged about 43 years) son of Shri Raj Kumar Agarwal, resident of Triveniganj, Near Dharamshala Road, Triveniganj, Supaul, Bihar - 852139. ... ... Petitioner/s Versus
State of Bihar through Commissioner of State Tax, Bihar, Patna having its office at Vikas Bhawan, Patna.
Addl. Commissioner of State Tax (Appeal), Purnea Division, Purnea.
Asst. Commissioner of State Tax, Supaul Circle, Supaul, Bihar. ... ... Respondent/s ====================================================== Appearance : For the Petitioner/s : Mr.D.V.Pathy, Advocate For the Respondent/s : Mr.Government Pleader ( 7) ====================================================== CORAM: HONOURABLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE and HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE HARISH KUMAR ORAL JUDGMENT (Per: HONOURABLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE) Date : 27-02-2024 The petitioner is aggrieved with the dismissal of the appeal,
The judgment continues below.
Read the full judgment
A free account opens 10 full GST judgments a month (one account works on both bharattax.net and this site). Re-reading one you have already opened does not count again.
The summary, the parties, the sections and the citations above are open to everyone and always will be. Only the text of the order and the PDF are metered.
Reproduced from the public record of the Patna High Court. Verify against the court's own copy before relying on it. Income tax judgments are on bharattax.net.