Desk of CA. Praveen Sharma – 1051 Series (CAPS) 

Rajasthan High Court IN THE CASE OF  Bhagwati Industries v. Union of India

 Rajasthan High Court Gives Relief in Delayed GST Appeal

In a significant judgment, the Rajasthan High Court has ruled that procedural delays should not prevent taxpayers from getting justice. The case involved Bhagwati Industries, which challenged a GST demand of ?79.85 lakh relating to Reverse Charge Mechanism (RCM) on royalty and other mining-related charges.

The taxpayer had filed an appeal under Section 107 of the CGST Act, but it was rejected because it was filed after the prescribed limitation period. Aggrieved by this, the taxpayer approached the High Court seeking condonation of delay and a direction to hear the appeal on merits.

The High Court exercised its extraordinary powers under Article 226 of the Constitution and observed that, in deserving cases, substantive justice should prevail over technical procedural delays. Accordingly, the Court condoned the delay, restored the appeal, and directed the appellate authority to hear the matter on merits.

The Court clarified that it had not expressed any opinion on the correctness of the GST demand and that all legal and factual issues would be decided independently by the appellate authority.

This judgment highlights that while limitation periods are important, High Courts can intervene in exceptional cases to ensure that taxpayers are not denied a fair opportunity to challenge assessment orders. It reinforces the principle that justice should be based on the merits of a case rather than being defeated by procedural technicalities.

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CAPS