M/S Laxmi Steel vs. Union Of INDIA

Held

The Court disposed of the present petition in view of the submissions made by the petitioner. The petitioner contended that an amendment via a Gazette Notification dated 29.03.2025, under The Finance Act, 2025, exempted them from the 10% pre-deposit requirement for filing an appeal. The petitioner stated they are free to raise this ground before the Appellate Authority by filing an appropriate application along with the memo. The Court, by disposing of the petition, implicitly accepted the petitioner's assertion that they could pursue their appellate remedy without adhering to the pre-deposit condition, or at least that the issue could be raised before the appellate forum. No specific finding on the validity of the amendment or Section 107 was made by the High Court; rather, the petition was resolved based on the petitioner's stated intention to approach the appellate authority. No specific issue was left undecided, as the petition itself was disposed of.

Facts

The petitioner, M/s Laxmi Steel, filed a writ petition before the Madhya Pradesh High Court challenging an order-in-original dated 13.12.2025, passed by the Joint Commissioner, GST, Sehore. The petitioner was aggrieved by Condition No. 5 of the order, which informed them of the appellate remedy before the Commissioner (Appeal) subject to payment of 10% of the duty demand and penalty. This condition aligns with the statutory pre-deposit requirement under Section 107 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017. The petitioner contended that an amendment via a Gazette Notification dated 29.03.2025, under The Finance Act, 2025, exempted them from this 10% pre-deposit requirement when filing an appeal.

Key Issues

1. Whether the amendment brought by the Gazette Notification dated 29.03.2025, under The Finance Act, 2025, exempts the petitioner from the statutory requirement of pre-depositing 10% of the duty demand and penalty while filing an appeal against the order-in-original, as stipulated under Section 107 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017? Petitioner's Contention: The petitioner argued that the aforementioned amendment has rendered the 10% pre-deposit requirement inapplicable for filing an appeal. They asserted that they are now free to raise this ground before the Appellate Authority by filing an appropriate application along with their appeal memo. Revenue's Contention: The judgment does not record any specific arguments or contentions from the respondents (Union of India and others).