Sundaram Mahadeo Autoworld PVT. LTD. vs. The Union Of INDIA And 7 Ors.

Held

The Court held that the petitioner's case should be considered to enable them to submit the declaration in FORM GST TRAN-1. The Court noted that Order No. 01/2019-GST provided an extension until March 31, 2019, for those who faced technical difficulties, subject to their cases being recommended by the Council. While the judgment does not explicitly state that the petitioner's case was recommended by the Council, the Court directed respondent Nos. 2 (Commissioner, Central Goods and Service Tax, Dibrugarh) and 3 (GST Council) to accept and entertain the declaration to be filed by the petitioner in FORM GST TRAN-1 electronically on the portal. This relief was granted subject to the condition that the filing is completed on or before March 31, 2019. The ratio decidendi is that genuine technical difficulties encountered on the GST portal, in light of the extension provided by the administration, should be accommodated to allow taxpayers to file necessary declarations.

Facts

The petitioner, Sundaram Mahadeo Autoworld Pvt. Ltd., represented by its director, sought to file FORM GST TRAN-1 returns electronically. The petitioner claimed they were unable to upload the returns due to technical glitches on the GST portal. The original deadline for submission was January 31, 2019. The petitioner had made representations to the authorities seeking an extension, but received no reply. Subsequently, Order No. 01/2019-GST extended the period for submitting FORM GST TRAN-1 until March 31, 2019, for registered persons facing technical difficulties, provided their cases were recommended by the Council. The petitioner approached the High Court for relief.

Key Issues

1. Whether the petitioner, having faced technical difficulties in uploading FORM GST TRAN-1, is entitled to file the same electronically after the initial due date, considering the extension provided by Order No. 01/2019-GST? Petitioner's Argument: The petitioner argued that due to technical glitches on the GST portal, they could not submit their FORM GST TRAN-1 within the stipulated time. They relied on their prior representations and the subsequent extension order, Order No. 01/2019-GST, which allowed filing until March 31, 2019, for those facing technical difficulties. Revenue's Argument: The Revenue, through the learned ASGI, submitted that if the petitioner was unable to submit the declaration due to technical difficulties, they would be covered by Order No. 01/2019-GST dated January 31, 2019.