2021 (12) TMI 840 - SC - GST

Supreme Court Overturns High Court Judgment, Emphasizes Precedent

Union Of India & Ors. Versus Aap And Company

The Supreme Court allowed the appeal, overturning the judgment of the High Court of Gujarat. The Court emphasized that the three-Judge Bench decision ... Validity of Circular issued by the CBIC - Jurisdiction - Form GSTR­-3B is return or not - imposition on rectification of Form GSTR­-3B in respect of the period in which the error had occurred - HELD THAT:- The judgement of the High Court has been expressly overruled by a three-Judge Bench decision of this Court in Civil Appeal [2021 (11) TMI 109 - SUPREME COURT] - Learned counsel for the respondent was at pains to persuade us that the three-Judge Bench judgment can be distinguished, without realising that the three-Judge Bench judgment expressly overrules the impugned judgment. - Decided in favor of Revenue. Issues:Challenge to the judgment of the High Court of Gujarat; Overruling of the judgment by a three-Judge Bench decision; Argument of distinguishing the three-Judge Bench judgment; Rejection of the note submitted by the respondent; Disposal of the civil appeal.Analysis:The Supreme Court heard an appeal challenging the judgment and order of the High Court of Gujarat. The judgment in question had been explicitly overruled by a three-Judge Bench decision of the Supreme Court in another case. The Court noted that the respondent's counsel attempted to argue that the three-Judge Bench judgment could be distinguished, but clarified that such an argument was not valid as the three-Judge Bench judgment directly overruled the impugned judgment. Consequently, the Court rejected the note submitted by the respondent. The Court ruled that the appeal succeeded on the same terms as the aforementioned three-Judge Bench decision. As a result, the civil appeal was disposed of accordingly, with any pending applications also being disposed of.