Writ Petition Dismissed for Missing Section 107 Appeal Deadline Under the Act of 2017

The HC held that the writ petition challenging the impugned order was not maintainable as the petitioner failed to file the statutory appeal within the prescribed limitation under Section 107 of the Act of 2017. The limitation for filing the appeal was 30 days, extendable by one month under certain conditions, which the petitioner did not meet. Filing the writ petition nearly eight months after the expiry of the limitation period was impermissible. The Court relied on SC precedent confirming that once the limitation for appeal expires, extraordinary writ jurisdiction under Article 226 cannot be invoked to challenge the order. Consequently, the petition was dismissed.

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Issues:
The issues involved in this case are challenging an order passed under Section 73 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, failure to respond to intimation letters and show cause notices, violation of natural justice principles, maintainability of writ petition due to alternative statutory remedy, and the timeliness of filing an appeal.

Challenged Order and Background:
The petitioner challenged an order dated 16.2.2022 passed by the Assistant Commissioner assessing a demand of Rs. 15,10,570 under Section 73 of the Act of 2017. The petitioner, a proprietor-firm in the hospitality sector, failed to respond to intimation letters and show cause notices, leading to the impugned order.

Violation of Natural Justice:
The petitioner argued that the impugned order lacked proper reasons as required by Section 73 of the Act of 2017, violating natural justice principles and the right to a fair hearing. The petitioner contended that the order was illegal and without jurisdiction due to the absence of specified reasons.

Statutory Remedy and Concealment Allegations:
The respondents contended that the petitioner concealed a significant credit amount in the bank account while filing GST returns, leading to a demand of Rs. 15,10,571. The respondents argued that the petitioner failed to file proper GSTR for the financial year 2017-18, justifying the liability.

Maintainability of Writ Petition:
The respondents argued that the writ petition was not maintainable as the petitioner had an alternative remedy of filing an appeal under Section 107 of the Act of 2017. The respondents highlighted the availability of statutory appeal and cited relevant legal precedents to support their stance.

Timeliness of Filing Appeal and Writ Petition:
The petitioner contended that the impugned order was non-speaking and did not comply with the Act of 2017, justifying the writ petition's maintainability. However, the court noted that the limitation for filing an appeal had expired, rendering the writ petition challenging the order not maintainable.

Court's Decision and Legal Precedent:
The court dismissed the writ petition, citing the petitioner's failure to file a statutory appeal within the prescribed limitation period. Referring to legal precedent, including the decision of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in Assistant Commissioner (CT) LTU, Kakinada & Ors., the court held that the writ petition filed after the expiration of the limitation period was not maintainable.

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