Jyothi Enterprises vs. Union Of INDIA
Held
The Court directed respondents No. 2 to 4 (Divisional Railway Manager, Senior Divisional Electrical Engineer (O.P.), and Senior Divisional Finance Manager of South Eastern Central Railway, Bilaspur) to consider the petitioner's claim regarding the demand for GST at the earliest, preferably within 45 days of receiving a copy of the order. The Court explicitly stated that it had not expressed any opinion on the merits of the case concerning the relief sought by the petitioner. The ratio decidendi is that representations pending before authorities concerning financial claims, especially where the petitioner alleges potential irreparable loss due to unreflected levies in tender documents, should be considered expeditiously by the concerned authorities.
Facts
The petitioner, Jyothi Enterprises, represented by its proprietor Rajesh Kumar Sharma, filed a writ petition seeking a direction to the respondents (South Eastern Central Railway authorities) to consider and decide its representation regarding the levy of GST. The petitioner contended that GST was not reflected in the tender documents, and therefore, they did not factor it into their quoted price. Consequently, being asked to pay GST now would cause irreparable loss. The petitioner had made multiple representations to the respondents, which remained pending. The respondents are the Union of India through the Ministry of Railway, Divisional Railway Manager, Senior Divisional Electrical Engineer (O.P.), and Senior Divisional Finance Manager, all of South Eastern Central Railway, Bilaspur.
Key Issues
1. Whether the respondents should be directed to consider and decide the petitioner's representation concerning the levy of GST on a tender, given that GST was not reflected in the tender documents at the time of bidding? The petitioner argued that the absence of GST in the tender documents led them to quote prices without considering this levy. They contended that being required to pay GST retrospectively would result in irreparable loss. The petitioner relied on their pending representations to the respondents. The respondents' arguments are not recorded in the judgment.
AI-generated summary — verify with the full judgment below
1 NAFR HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR WPC No. 233 of 2020 Jyothi Enterprises Proprietor Rajesh Kumar Sharma, S/o R.R.N. Sharma, Aged About Year Through General Power Of Attorney Holder Ramashankar Tiwari S/o Late G.P. Tiwari, Aged About 50 Years, R/o Chandni Chowk, Shankarpur, Parsudih, Post Office Tata Nagar, Police Station Parsudih, Town Jamshedpur, District East Singh Bhum, State Of Jharkhand. ---- Petitioner Versus
Union Of India Through Secretary Ministry Of Railway, 256-A, Raisina Road, Rajpath Area, Central Secretariat, New Delhi.
Divisional Railway Manager South Eastern Central Railway, Bilaspur, District Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh.
Senior Divisional Electrical Engineer (O.P.) South Eastern Central Railway, Bilaspur, District Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh.
Senior Divisional Finance Manager South Eastern Central Railway, Bilaspur, District Bilaspur, Chhattisgarh. ---- Respondents For Petitioner : Mr. Uttam Pandey, Advocate For respective Respondents : Mr. R.S. Patel, Advocate Hon'ble Shri Justice P. Sam Koshy Order on Board 20/01/2020
The limited relief that the petitioner has sought for at this juncture is for an appropriate direction to the respondents to c
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