Petitioner entitled to claim input tax credit under GST for system error

The Court directed the petitioner, a registered dealer under the Kerala Value Added Tax Act migrating to the Goods and Services Tax regime, to apply to the Nodal Officer for uploading FORM GST TRAN-1 to utilize available input tax credit due to a system error. The Nodal Officer must address the issue promptly, allowing the petitioner to claim the credit without time constraints if uploading is hindered by reasons beyond the petitioner's control. The judgment emphasizes the importance of the IT Grievance Redressal Mechanism circular in resolving technical glitches on the GST Portal for taxpayers.

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Issues:
1. Failure to upload FORM GST TRAN-1 within the stipulated time due to a system error.
2. Applicability of circular on IT Grievance Redressal Mechanism issued by the Government of India.
3. Relief sought by the petitioner regarding taking credit of available input tax.

Analysis:
1. The petitioner, a registered dealer under the Kerala Value Added Tax Act, migrated to the Goods and Services Tax regime. Due to a system error, the petitioner failed to upload FORM GST TRAN-1 within the stipulated time to utilize the input tax credit available at the time of migration. The petitioner seeks directions to enable the credit of the available input tax.

2. The judgment refers to a circular issued by the Government of India regarding an IT Grievance Redressal Mechanism for addressing taxpayer grievances due to technical glitches on the GST Portal. The circular outlines the procedure for taxpayers to address issues faced on the Common Portal, emphasizing the appointment of nodal officers by GSTN, Central, and State governments to handle such problems. Taxpayers are required to make applications with evidence to the nodal officers for identified issues related to technical glitches on the Common Portal.

3. The Court notes that not only the petitioner but also others faced similar technical glitches and approached the Court. Previous instances saw the Court permitting petitioners to apply to the Nodal Officer for issue resolution. In this case, the petitioner is directed to apply to the Nodal Officer, who will address the issue and facilitate the uploading of FORM GST TRAN-1 without considering the time-frame. The Nodal Officer is instructed to consider the application within two weeks of the judgment and take necessary steps within a week thereafter. If the uploading is not possible for reasons not attributable to the petitioner, the authority will enable the petitioner to take credit for the input tax available during migration.

This comprehensive analysis of the judgment highlights the issues faced by the petitioner, the application of the circular on IT Grievance Redressal Mechanism, and the relief granted by the Court in enabling the petitioner to utilize the available input tax credit.

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