M/S Shalby LTD. vs. Joint Commissioner CGST And Central Excise And Secvice Tax

Held

The Court held that the petitioner should be granted leave to withdraw the writ petition with liberty to approach the appellate authority against the impugned assessment order dated 31.01.2025. The petition was dismissed as withdrawn with the liberty as prayed for. The Court further clarified that if the petitioner files an appeal within two weeks from the date of the order, the appellate authority shall consider the appeal on its merits and not reject it solely on the ground of limitation. The ratio is that a petitioner can withdraw a writ petition to pursue a statutory remedy, and the appellate authority should consider such appeals filed promptly, even if there's a slight delay, on merits.

Facts

The petitioner, M/s Shalby Ltd., filed a writ petition before the High Court of Madhya Pradesh at Jabalpur. The petition challenged an assessment order dated 31.01.2025, passed by the Joint Commissioner, CGST and Central Excise and Service Tax. The petitioner sought leave to withdraw the petition to approach the appellate authority against the impugned assessment order. The Court granted this request and dismissed the petition as withdrawn, with liberty to file an appeal.

Key Issues

1. Whether the petitioner should be granted leave to withdraw the writ petition with liberty to approach the appellate authority against the impugned assessment order dated 31.01.2025? The petitioner argued for withdrawal to pursue the available statutory remedy. The respondents did not record any specific argument against this request. The core issue revolved around permitting the petitioner to abandon the writ proceedings in favour of an appeal.