Writ disposed, taxpayer directed to use GSTAT appeal u/s 112 with mandatory pre-deposit under 112(8)

HC held that, with the GSTAT now functional and the statutory appeal under Section 112 of the GST Act available, the writ petition is not to be kept pending. While recognizing that writ jurisdiction can be invoked when an appellate forum is non-functional, HC emphasized that once such forum is constituted, disputes must ordinarily be relegated to that statutory remedy. HC directed the petitioner to file an appeal before GSTAT within the prescribed extended timelines, subject to strict compliance with the mandatory pre-deposit requirement under Section 112(8). The writ petition was accordingly disposed of with these directions.

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1. ISSUES PRESENTED AND CONSIDERED

1. Whether a writ petition is maintainable to challenge an appellate order under the GST Act when the statutory appellate tribunal was previously non-functional but has since been constituted and made operational with notified timelines for filing appeals.

2. Whether the pre-deposit requirement under Section 112(8) of the GST Act must be complied with when approaching the Goods and Services Tax Appellate Tribunal, even where the petitioner had initially invoked writ jurisdiction citing non-constitution of the tribunal.

3. What directions are appropriate regarding redressal of the petitioner's grievance once the appellate tribunal is functional and extended, staggered timelines for filing appeals before the tribunal have been notified and operationalised.

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2. ISSUE-WISE DETAILED ANALYSIS

Issue 1: Maintainability of writ petition in light of subsequent constitution and functioning of the appellate tribunal under the GST Act

Legal framework:

4. The judgment proceeds on the basis of Section 112 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 / Odisha Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, which provides for appeals to the Goods and Services Tax Appellate Tribunal against orders in appeal. The Court notices Notification S.O. No. 4220(E) dated 17 September 2025 issued by the Department of Revenue under Section 112(1) notifying 30 June 2026 as the outer date up to which appeals may be filed before the Appellate Tribunal in respect of specified orders, and thereafter within three months for orders communicated on or after 1 April 2026.

4.1. The Court also takes note of the "User Advisory for the GSTAT E-Filing Portal" prescribing a staggered filing period up to 31 December 2025, and the general window up to 30 June 2026 for filing appeals before the tribunal corresponding to the dates of APL-01/APL-03/RVN-01, including special provision for cases where ARN/CRN is not available in the GSTN system.

Interpretation and reasoning:

4.2. The Court records that it is no longer res integra that writ jurisdiction can be invoked to assail an order where a statutory appellate forum, though provided, is not constituted or not functional, as an aggrieved person cannot be rendered remediless.

4.3. At the same time, the Court emphasizes that once the statutory forum is available and functional, and the period for filing appeals is provided and extended through statutory notification and e-filing advisory, it would not be proper for the Writ Court to continue to entertain or keep pending writ petitions where such forum can adjudicate the dispute.

4.4. The Court notes that the grievance earlier urged-non-constitution and non-functionality of the Goods and Services Tax Appellate Tribunal-stands addressed by the subsequent notification making the tribunal functional and providing adequate and extended timelines for filing appeals.

Conclusions:

4.5. Writ petitions filed earlier on the ground of non-availability of the tribunal are not to be kept pending once the appellate tribunal has been made functional and concrete timelines for filing appeals have been notified.

4.6. The appropriate course is for the petitioner to avail the statutory appellate remedy before the Goods and Services Tax Appellate Tribunal within the notified timelines rather than pursuing the writ petition on merits.

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Issue 2: Necessity of complying with the pre-deposit requirement under Section 112(8) of the GST Act when appealing to the tribunal after invoking writ jurisdiction

Legal framework:

5. The Court extracts and relies upon Section 112(8) of the GST Act, which mandates that no appeal shall be filed under Section 112(1) unless:

(a) the appellant has paid in full such part of the amount of tax, interest, fine, fee and penalty arising from the impugned order as is admitted by him; and

(b) a sum equal to ten per cent of the remaining amount of tax in dispute, in addition to the amount paid under Section 107(6), subject to a maximum of twenty crore rupees.

Interpretation and reasoning:

5.1. The Court reiterates that although writ jurisdiction can be invoked where the appellate forum is non-functional, that does not entitle a litigant to bypass or dilute the statutory conditions attached to the filing of an appeal once the forum is available.

5.2. The Court clearly states that even where writ jurisdiction had been properly invoked earlier due to non-constitution of the tribunal, a litigant cannot "steal a march" by seeking orders from the Writ Court in derogation of express statutory requirements such as the mandatory pre-deposit under Section 112(8).

5.3. The Court underscores that when a statute prescribes conditions for filing an appeal, the Writ Court, while directing recourse to the appellate forum, must ensure strict compliance with such statutory preconditions.

Conclusions:

5.4. Compliance with the pre-deposit requirements stipulated in Section 112(8) is mandatory for filing an appeal before the Goods and Services Tax Appellate Tribunal.

5.5. The fact that the tribunal was earlier non-functional and the petitioner had approached the Writ Court does not absolve the petitioner from fulfilling the statutory pre-deposit condition when now availing the appellate remedy.

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Issue 3: Appropriate directions following availability of the appellate remedy and notified timelines

Interpretation and reasoning:

6. The Court observes that the statutory forum-Goods and Services Tax Appellate Tribunal-has been made functional and that comprehensive timelines for filing appeals (including staggered filing periods and a long-stop date of 30 June 2026) have been notified through the central government notification and the "User Advisory for the GSTAT E-Filing Portal."

6.1. In view of such arrangements, the Court holds that the petitioner's dispute can and should be adjudicated by the tribunal rather than in writ proceedings.

6.2. The Court therefore declines to go into the merits of the first appellate order and confines itself to ensuring that the petitioner is directed to properly channel the grievance through the statutory appeal mechanism, with due compliance of statutory preconditions.

Conclusions and directions:

6.3. The writ petition is disposed of with the following operative directions:

(i) The petitioner is directed to deposit, if not already deposited, the amount required under Section 112(8) of the GST Act and to file an appeal before the Goods and Services Tax Appellate Tribunal within the period specified in the timelines contained in the notification and the "User Advisory for the GSTAT E-Filing Portal."

(ii) The petitioner shall file the appeal in accordance with the staggered and overall timelines prescribed in the said User Advisory.

(iii) In the event the appeal is filed and is found to be in order as per the requirements of Section 112 of the GST Act and the relevant Rules, the same shall be entertained by the Goods and Services Tax Appellate Tribunal.

6.4. The Court clarifies that it has expressed no opinion on the merits of the first appellate order and that pending interlocutory applications stand disposed of as a consequence of the disposal of the writ petition.

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