Abicor And Binzer Technoweld PVT. LTD. vs. The Union Of INDIA And Ors.

Held

The Court acknowledged the existence of IT-related glitches on the GST portal that prevented taxpayers from filing their returns. While the Revenue had established a grievance redressal mechanism through Nodal Officers, the Court noted the lack of a defined time frame for resolving these issues. The Court extended the deadline for filing TRAN-1, which was impacted by technical glitches, from April 30, 2018, to May 10, 2018. This extension was specifically for those taxpayers who could provide necessary proof of their inability to access the portal due to such glitches. The Court clarified that this extension was not a general facility and did not express an opinion on the legal or factual merits of the returns themselves. Any other deficiencies or defects in the returns would need to be resolved independently on their own merits through existing forums.

Facts

Multiple petitioners, including Padmavati Enterprise, Abicor and Binzel Technoweld Pvt. Ltd., Draeger Safety India Private Limited, AGS Transact Technologies Limited, and various Arihant entities, filed writ petitions before the Bombay High Court. The core grievance was the inability of these taxpayers to file TRAN-1 and GSTR-3B returns due to technical glitches on the common GST portal. The respondents, Union of India and others, through the Additional Solicitor General, submitted an affidavit indicating that Nodal Officers had been appointed to address such IT-related grievances. Taxpayers could apply to these officers with proof of the glitch. The original deadline for filing TRAN-1 was April 30, 2018, and for GSTR-3B was May 31, 2018.

Key Issues

1. Whether the Court should entertain writ petitions concerning IT-related glitches on the GST portal that prevented taxpayers from filing their returns, given the existence of a grievance redressal mechanism? 2. Whether the deadline for filing TRAN-1, which was impacted by IT glitches, should be extended? Petitioner's arguments (implied): The petitioners argued that the technical glitches on the GST portal were beyond their control and prevented them from complying with statutory filing requirements. They sought intervention from the High Court to allow them to file their returns and avoid penal consequences. They relied on the principle that a taxpayer should not be penalized for non-compliance caused by system failures. Revenue's arguments: The Revenue submitted that a grievance redressal mechanism, involving Nodal Officers, was in place to address IT-related issues. They indicated that taxpayers could approach these officers with proof of glitches. While acknowledging the issue, they initially stated there was no evolved time frame for resolving these grievances and that the deadline for TRAN-1 filing was April 30, 2018, which could not be extended.