Small Trader Wins GST Appeal Reprieve: Delayed Filing Accepted with Additional Rs.50,000 Deposit Under Equitable Jurisdiction

HC allowed writ petition for delayed GST appeal filed by small trader. Despite missing statutory appeal timeline, court directed Appellate Commissioner to accept appeal upon additional deposit of Rs.50,000, condoning 40-day delay. Appeal to be disposed on merits without imposing costs, recognizing petitioner's procedural constraints.

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Issues involved:
The issues involved in the judgment are the delay in filing an appeal under Section 107 of the respective GST enactments, the refusal of the Office of the Appellate Commissioner to accept the manual copy of the appeal, and the exercise of Court's powers under Article 226 in derogation of the provisions of the GST enactments.

Delay in filing appeal:
The petitioner received an order under Section 73 of the Tamil Nadu Goods and Services Tax (TNGST) Act, 2017, on 27.02.2023, communicated on the same day. The last date for filing an appeal was 26.05.2023, with a grace period of 30 days. However, the petitioner filed the appeal on 03.07.2023, beyond the condonable period. The Office of the Appellate Commissioner declined to accept the manual copy of the appeal due to the delay.

Refusal to accept manual copy:
The Office of the Appellate Commissioner refused to accept the manual copy of the appeal, stating that it was filed beyond the condonable period prescribed under Section 107 of the respective GST enactments. The petitioner's appeal was filed on 03.07.2023, which was beyond the 30-day grace period after the initial 90 days for filing the appeal.

Exercise of Court's powers under Article 226:
The learned Government Advocate for the respondent argued that the writ petition lacked merit and should be dismissed, as the Court's powers under Article 226 cannot be exercised in derogation of the provisions of the GST enactments. The respondent relied on previous decisions of the Court related to Customs and Excise Act, 1998, to support the dismissal of the writ petition.

Decision and Order:
Considering the petitioner's status as a small-time trader who had defaults in filing returns and suffered an Assessment Order, the Court allowed the writ petition. The Court directed the respondent to number the appeal upon the petitioner depositing an additional sum of Rs.50,000 over and above the pre-deposit amount. With this payment, the delay of 40 days in filing the appeal was condoned, and the Appellate Commissioner was instructed to dispose of the appeal on merits. The writ petition was allowed with no costs.

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