Mandatory pre-deposit under GST cannot justify dismissal without hearing on whether electronic credit ledger payment satisfies section 107.

An appellate authority cannot sustain dismissal of a GST appeal for alleged failure to make the mandatory pre-deposit under section 107 of the CGST Act if the assessee was never confronted with the objection that payment through the electronic credit ledger would not satisfy the statutory requirement. The High Court held that the authority had to give an opportunity to meet that objection before deciding the appeal. The dismissal order was quashed and the matter was remanded to the Commissioner (Appeals) for fresh decision after hearing both sides on whether a deposit through the electronic credit ledger amounts to valid pre-deposit under section 107.

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Issues: Whether the appellate order dismissing the appeal for alleged non-deposit of the mandatory pre-deposit under section 107 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, could be sustained when the petitioner's deposit through the electronic credit ledger was not put in issue before the order was passed.

Analysis: The appeal had been dismissed on the ground that the mandatory pre-deposit under section 107 was not made. The record showed that the petitioner was not confronted with the objection that the amount deposited through the electronic credit ledger would not satisfy the statutory requirement. In these circumstances, the appellate authority was required to afford an opportunity to meet that objection before deciding the appeal on merits.

Conclusion: The dismissal order could not be sustained and was quashed. The matter was remanded to the Commissioner (Appeals) for fresh decision after hearing both sides on whether deposit through the electronic credit ledger amounts to valid pre-deposit under section 107 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017.

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