Court Orders Reopening of GST Portal for Tran-1 Filing

The court directed the respondents to reopen the portal within two weeks for filing GST Tran-1. If not reopened, manual filing was allowed with verification of claimed credits. The petitioner could pay taxes using the regular electronic system for the credit. Respondents were to file a counter affidavit within a month, with further hearing scheduled in August 2018.

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Issues:
Petitioner seeking mandamus for extension of time for filing GST Tran-1 due to technical issues on the last date.

Analysis:
The petitioner approached the court seeking a writ of mandamus directing the GST council to recommend to the State Government an extension of the time period for filing GST Tran-1. The petitioner's application was not entertained on the last date, leading to concerns about losing entitled credit. The petitioner alleged that despite efforts, the electronic system did not respond, potentially causing a loss of credit.

The court, in response to the petition, directed the respondents to reopen the portal within two weeks. If the portal is not reopened, the respondents are instructed to entertain the GST TRAN-1 manually from the petitioner and verify the claimed credits. Additionally, the petitioner should be allowed to pay taxes using the regular electronic system for the credit under consideration. Furthermore, the respondents are required to file a counter affidavit within a month, and the matter is listed for further hearing on a specified date in August 2018.

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