Commissioner Of Central Good And Service vs. M/S Kotsons PVT LTD , Alwar

Held

The Court held that in view of the circular dated July 11, 2018, which raised the monetary limit for filing appeals before High Courts to ₹50,00,000/-, the appeal filed by the appellant is to be dismissed as not pressed. The reasoning is that the circular mandates that appeals shall not be filed below the specified monetary limits, and this instruction applies to pending cases as well. The Court granted liberty to the appellant to revive the appeal in case of difficulty. Consequently, the connected cross-objection was also dismissed with liberty to revive if the appeal is revived. The ratio decidendi is that departmental appeals, if falling below the revised monetary thresholds set by the CBIC for appellate forums, should be withdrawn or not pressed, unless they involve substantial questions of law.

Facts

The appellant, Commissioner of Central Goods and Service Tax, filed an appeal and a connected cross-objection against M/s Kotsons Pvt. Ltd. The case pertains to legacy issues concerning Central Excise and Service Tax. The appeal and cross-objection were filed before the High Court. The judgment was delivered on July 25, 2018. The core of the matter revolves around a subsequent circular issued by the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) on July 11, 2018, which revised the monetary limits for filing appeals by the Department before various appellate forums, including High Courts.

Key Issues

1. Whether the appeal filed by the appellant is maintainable in light of the revised monetary limits for filing appeals stipulated in the CBIC Circular dated July 11, 2018? Appellant's Contention: The appellant did not explicitly argue on the maintainability of the appeal based on the circular. However, the court's decision implies that the circular's provisions were to be considered. Revenue/State's Contention: The judgment does not record any specific arguments from the respondent (M/s Kotsons Pvt. Ltd.) on this issue. The decision appears to be driven by the circular itself.