Tax Authorities Must Allow GSTR-1 Invoice Amendment for Clerical Errors Under Fair Administrative Principles

HC allowed petitioner's writ mandamus to rectify GSTR-1 for 2017-2018, permitting amendment of invoice details due to clerical error. Court kept contentions regarding ITC eligibility open, enabling further legal applications without imposing costs, effectively providing procedural relief for tax documentation correction.

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Issues involved:
The petition sought a writ of mandamus to rectify GSTR-1 for 2017-2018 and to declare eligibility of respondent no. 4 for ITC amounting to Rs. 64,36,188 due to a clerical error by the petitioner.

Rectification of GSTR-1:
The petitioner requested to amend invoice details in GSTR-1 for the period 2017-18, citing a need to rectify a clerical error. The petitioner approached the jurisdictional officer to allow the amendment, supported by confirmation from job workers that no input tax credit had been availed. Despite no proceedings initiated against respondent no. 4, the petitioner sought rectification based on guidelines issued by the State of Maharashtra. The petitioner argued that there was no provision under the CGST Act for rectification of bonafide errors in GSTR-1, emphasizing that there was no revenue implication. Relying on a previous court decision, the petitioner contended that legitimate rectification should be allowed without technical hindrances.

Decision:
The High Court allowed the petition, permitting the petitioner to rectify the GSTR-1 for the period 2017-18. The court kept all contentions open regarding the eligibility of respondent no. 4 for ITC, allowing the petitioner to make further applications if permissible by law. The judgment was disposed of with no costs incurred.

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