M/S. Brilliant Estates Limited (Erstwhile M/S. Choudhary Builders PVT. LTD.) Through Director, Shri vs. Asst. Commissioner CGST And Central Excise

Held

The Court noted that the writ petitions were filed when the GST Appellate Tribunal had not yet been brought into operation. However, a notification dated 04.08.2025 indicated that appointments of Presiding Officers for the GST Appellate Tribunal had been made. The Court expressed hope and trust that the tribunal would commence functioning within a month. Consequently, the Court permitted both writ petitions to be withdrawn. The petitioner was granted liberty to approach the GST Appellate Tribunal as and when it becomes operational. The petitions were accordingly dismissed as withdrawn.

Facts

M/s Brilliant Estates Limited (erstwhile M/s. Choudhary Builders Pvt. Ltd.) filed two writ petitions before the Madhya Pradesh High Court at Indore. The petitions challenged orders-in-original passed by the Assistant Commissioner, CGST and Central Excise Division III, and others. The petitions were filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, read with Section 74(1) of the CGST Act, 2017, and Section 74 of the MPGST Act, 2017. The petitioner sought relief against the adverse orders. The core of the dispute pertains to tax liabilities determined by the revenue authorities.

Key Issues

1. Whether the writ petitions are maintainable before the High Court in light of the impending operationalization of the GST Appellate Tribunal, as per Section 74(1) of the CGST Act, 2017 and Section 74 of the MPGST Act, 2017? The petitioner, M/s Brilliant Estates Limited, argued that the petitions were filed because the GST Appellate Tribunal was not yet functional. The revenue, represented by the Assistant Commissioner, CGST and Central Excise, did not explicitly record any arguments in the judgment regarding the maintainability of the writ petitions. However, the court's decision to permit withdrawal with liberty to approach the tribunal implicitly acknowledges the tribunal's intended appellate jurisdiction.