Jose .V.M vs. The Secretary TO Government

Facts

The petitioner, Jose .V.M., filed a writ petition seeking a mandamus to prohibit the Chairman of the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) from conducting the SANKALP-Annual Conference of Customs and GST. The conference was scheduled to be held on May 5th and 6th, 2022, at Taj Fishermans Cove, Mahabalipuram, Tamil Nadu. The petitioner had previously made a representation via email to the Secretaries to the Government, Department of Finance and Department of Revenue, Union of India, on April 26, 2022, requesting this prohibition. The matter was listed before the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on July 11, 2022.

Held

The Court did not decide the merits of the writ petition. Instead, it granted the petitioner four weeks' time to report compliance or to obtain appropriate orders from the Supreme Court of India, in light of the SLP filed by the petitioner. The Court adjourned the matter to August 8, 2022, for further hearing. No specific findings were made on the legality or propriety of the proposed conference, nor were any provisions of the GST Act discussed or interpreted. The operative direction was to grant time for the petitioner to approach the Supreme Court.

Key Issues

1. Whether the Court should issue a writ of mandamus directing the respondents to prohibit the CBIC from conducting the SANKALP-Annual Conference of Customs and GST on May 5th and 6th, 2022, based on the petitioner's representation dated April 26, 2022. The petitioner's contention, as presented to the Court, was that they had filed a Special Leave Petition (SLP) in the Supreme Court of India (Diary No. 18317 of 2022) and sought time to report compliance or obtain appropriate orders from the Supreme Court. The respondents, represented by the Central Government Standing Counsel, did not present any arguments on the merits of the case during this hearing.