Facts of the Case

The petitioner, Hemanta Kumar Kisan, was a registered dealer. His grievance arose from an order dated 9 September 2021 passed by the CT & GST Officer, Jharsuguda Circle, Jharsuguda, which proceeded on the basis that the petitioner was not a registered dealer.

The petitioner contended that, because the impugned order treated him as an unregistered dealer, he was unable to file an appeal against the order in terms of Section 107 of the Odisha GST Act. It was further pointed out that the GST Portal concerning the petitioner would not reflect the impugned order because the petitioner had been treated as an unregistered dealer.

Issues Involved

The principal issues before the High Court were:

  1. Whether a registered dealer, who had been treated as an unregistered dealer in the impugned order, could avail the statutory appellate remedy under Section 107 of the Odisha GST Act.
  2. Whether the appeal could be filed using the Temporary GSTIN number assigned to the petitioner in the impugned order.
  3. Whether the delay in filing the appeal could be considered for condonation where such delay was explained on account of the pendency of the writ petition before the High Court.

Petitioner’s Arguments

The petitioner submitted that:

  • He was, in fact, a registered dealer.
  • The impugned order dated 9 September 2021 incorrectly proceeded on the basis that he was not a registered dealer.
  • Consequently, he contended that no appeal could be filed against the impugned order in terms of Section 107 of the Odisha GST Act.
  • The GST Portal relating to the petitioner did not reflect the impugned order because the system treated him as an unregistered dealer.

Accordingly, the petitioner approached the High Court challenging the difficulty arising from the manner in which his registration status had been treated in the impugned order.

Respondent’s Arguments

The Department, through the learned Additional Standing Counsel, pointed out that paragraph 2 of the impugned order had assigned a Temporary GSTIN number to the petitioner.

The Department submitted that:

  • The petitioner was required to file the appeal using the said Temporary GSTIN number.
  • Once the appeal was entertained and the impugned order was set aside, the petitioner’s Portal would reflect the appellate order.
  • Such appellate order would operate in substitution of the impugned order.

Thus, according to the Department, the availability of the Temporary GSTIN provided a mechanism for pursuing the statutory appellate remedy.

Court Order / Findings

The High Court did not entertain the writ petition on merits. Instead, the Court reserved the petitioner’s right to file an appeal against the impugned order by using the Temporary GSTIN number provided in the impugned order itself.

The Court directed that:

  • The petitioner could file an appeal against the impugned order using the Temporary GSTIN number.
  • If the appeal was filed not later than 19 December 2022, along with an application for condonation of delay,
  • and the delay was explained on account of the pendency of the writ petition,
  • the Appellate Authority would consider the application and appeal on their merits.

The writ petition was accordingly disposed of in those terms.

Important Clarification

The High Court expressly clarified that it had not expressed any view on the merits of the matter.

Therefore, the order was confined to preserving and facilitating the petitioner’s statutory appellate remedy by permitting the use of the Temporary GSTIN number assigned in the impugned order. The substantive dispute was left open for independent consideration by the Appellate Authority on its own merits.

Section Involved

Section 107 of the Odisha Goods and Services Tax Act (Odisha GST Act) – Statutory appeal against decisions or orders passed by an adjudicating authority.

The case specifically concerns the practical availability of the appellate remedy under Section 107 where a person claiming to be a registered dealer was treated as an unregistered dealer in the impugned order and the order was consequently not reflected on the concerned GST Portal.

Link to download the order -https://www.mytaxexpert.co.in/uploads/1783313830_1002compressed.pdf

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