Sanctioned GST refund cannot be withheld for administrative delay; balance amount must be released with applicable interest.

A sanctioned GST refund cannot be withheld merely because of internal procedural or administrative delay in revalidation or processing, and once entitlement is established the balance amount must be released with applicable statutory interest. The Madras HC treated the pending disbursement as a ministerial obstacle rather than a substantive ground to deny payment, and directed completion of the refund process within the time fixed by the Court.

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Issues: Whether the petitioner was entitled to a direction for release of the balance GST refund together with applicable interest notwithstanding administrative delay in revalidation and processing of the sanctioned refund orders.

Analysis: The refund had already been sanctioned, but only a part of the amount remained disbursed. The pending amount was held up only on account of procedural steps such as revalidation of earlier sanction orders. The Court treated such procedural obstacles as insufficient to justify withholding a legally due refund, particularly where the sanctioned amount was already ascertainable and payable under the GST framework.

Conclusion: The petitioner was held entitled to a direction for refund of the outstanding amount together with applicable interest.

Final Conclusion: The writ petition succeeded in substance, and the authorities were directed to complete the refund process within the time fixed by the Court.

Ratio Decidendi: A sanctioned GST refund cannot be withheld merely because of internal procedural or administrative delays, and once the entitlement is established, the amount due must be released with applicable statutory interest.

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