M/S. Taj Stone And Marbles Through Its Sole Proprietor Arbaz Mansuri vs. Union Of INDIA

Held

The Court, considering the non-functioning of the GST Appellate Tribunal, did not examine the merits of the impugned orders. Instead, it granted liberty to the petitioner to avail the remedy as provided in para 3 of the Circular No. 224/18/2024-GST dated 11th July, 2024. This circular states that if an appeal is filed under sub-section (8) of Section 112 of the CGST Act with the prescribed pre-deposit, the recovery proceedings for the balance amount shall be deemed to be stayed until the disposal of the appeal, as per sub-section (9) of Section 112. The Court disposed of the writ petition with this liberty granted to the petitioner.

Facts

The petitioner, M/s. Taj Stone and Marbles, filed a writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India challenging orders passed by the assessing officer and the appellate authority under the GST Act. The petitioner stated that while an appeal remedy was available before the GST Appellate Tribunal under Section 112 of the GST Act, this remedy was not accessible as the Tribunal was not functioning. The State counsel brought to the Court's notice Circular No. 224/18/2024-GST dated 11th July, 2024, which provides guidelines for recovery of outstanding dues when the first appeal has been disposed of and the appellate tribunal is not operational.

Key Issues

1. Whether the petitioner can maintain a writ petition before the High Court when an alternative statutory remedy of appeal to the GST Appellate Tribunal is available under Section 112 of the CGST Act, despite the Tribunal not functioning? Petitioner's contention: The petitioner argued that the statutory remedy of appeal to the GST Appellate Tribunal is not available due to the non-functioning of the Tribunal, thus justifying the invocation of writ jurisdiction. Revenue/State's contention: The State brought to the Court's notice Circular No. 224/18/2024-GST dated 11th July, 2024, which provides guidelines for recovery of outstanding dues in cases where the first appeal has been disposed of and the appellate tribunal is not functioning. This circular suggests a procedure for dealing with such situations.