Statutory pre-deposit for GST second appeal granted time where tribunal was unavailable, with recovery stayed meanwhile.

Where the GST Appellate Tribunal was not yet constituted, the High Court granted the taxpayer two weeks to make the statutory pre-deposit required for a second appeal under Section 112(8)(b) of the CGST Act, being 20% of the remaining tax in dispute. Pending that deposit and disposal of the writ petition, coercive recovery of the assessed demand was kept in abeyance. If the deposit is not made within the time allowed, the authority is free to enforce the demand.

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Issues: Whether the petitioner should be granted time to make the statutory pre-deposit for a second appeal in the absence of the GST Appellate Tribunal, and whether recovery of the assessed demand should remain in abeyance meanwhile.

Analysis: The writ petition was filed because the GST Appellate Tribunal had not been constituted, leaving the petitioner without the normal appellate forum. The statutory requirement under Section 112(8)(b) of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, as referred to in the order, requires deposit of 20% of the remaining tax in dispute as a condition for entertaining the second appeal. The petitioner undertook to make the deposit within two weeks and sought protection against coercive recovery until disposal of the writ petition.

Outcome: The petitioner was granted two weeks to deposit 20% of the remaining tax in dispute, and further demand was directed to remain in abeyance till disposal of the writ petition, failing which the authority would be free to enforce the demand.

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