Pandemic-related delay under the Sabka Vishwas Scheme did not defeat scheme benefits; payment was directed to be accepted.

Delayed remittance under the Sabka Vishwas (Legacy Dispute Resolution) Scheme, 2019 was treated as payment under the Scheme where the declaration had already been accepted and the delay arose after the extended deadline during the Covid-19 period. Relying on Supreme Court orders extending limitation and earlier High Court rulings, the Court held that the payment deadline was directory in these circumstances and that pandemic-related delay should not defeat substantive scheme benefits. The refusal to accept the payment and issue Form SVLDRS-4 was not sustainable, and the amount paid was directed to be appropriated under the Scheme with issuance of the discharge certificate.

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Issues: Whether the payment made by the declarant after 30.06.2020 under the Sabka Vishwas (Legacy Dispute Resolution) Scheme, 2019 could be appropriated towards the scheme and whether the refusal to issue Form SVLDRS-4 was liable to be quashed.

Analysis: The payment was made pursuant to a declaration already accepted under the Scheme and the dispute arose only because the amount was remitted after the extended scheme date. The decision relied on the effect of the Supreme Court orders extending limitation during the Covid-19 pandemic and on prior High Court decisions holding that delayed remittance, where caused by pandemic-related constraints and not by any attempt to defeat the Scheme, should not deny substantive scheme benefits. The Court treated the time-limit requirement for payment under the Scheme as directory in the circumstances and held that the amount paid ought to be treated as payment under the Scheme.

Conclusion: The rejection of the petitioner's payment was not sustainable. The respondents were directed to appropriate the amount paid and to issue the discharge certificate in Form SVLDRS-4.

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