Facts of the Case

The Petitioner, M/s Gupta Training Company, Naveen Galla Mandi, Tihar, Shahjahanpur, filed a writ petition before the Allahabad High Court concerning its inability to file a statutory appeal within the time prescribed under Section 107 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017. The core issue for consideration was whether the benefit of Notification No. 53 of 2023-Central Tax, dated 2 November 2023 — an amnesty notification issued by the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) permitting belated filing of appeals in Form GST APL-01 on or before 31 January 2024, subject to conditions — was available to the Petitioner. The matter came up before a single Judge and was disposed of briefly, without any detailed recitation of the underlying assessment or demand that had given rise to the limitation difficulty. The order does not name the specific assessing authority or set out the quantum of the disputed demand, being confined to the narrow question of whether the notification's benefit extended to this Petitioner's facts.

Issues Involved

  1. Whether Notification No. 53/2023-Central Tax, granting a one-time extension for filing appeals under Section 107 of the CGST Act, 2017, was applicable to the Petitioner's case.
  2. Whether the Petitioner, having missed the original limitation period under Section 107(1) read with Section 107(4), could avail the extended window for filing an appeal.

Petitioner's Arguments

  • The Petitioner was unable to file its statutory appeal within the time specified under Section 107(1) read with Section 107(4) of the CGST Act, 2017.
  • The Petitioner sought the benefit of the amnesty extended by Notification No. 53 of 2023-Central Tax to file the belated appeal in Form GST APL-01.

Respondent's Arguments

  • The State, represented through its Standing Counsel, did not seriously contest the applicability of the Notification to persons similarly placed as the Petitioner.
  • No specific objection was recorded against extending the benefit of the amnesty scheme, subject to the Petitioner fulfilling the conditions prescribed therein.

Court Order/Findings

  • The Court examined Notification No. 53 of 2023-Central Tax and found it patently clear that persons who could not file an appeal within the time specified under Section 107(1) read with Section 107(4) of the CGST Act could file their appeal in Form GST APL-01 on or before 31 January 2024, subject to fulfilling the conditions in the Notification.
  • The Court held that the Petitioner was entitled to avail the benefit of the amnesty Notification, disposing of the writ petition with liberty to file the appeal accordingly.
  • No opinion was expressed on the merits of the underlying tax demand; the disposal was confined to enabling the statutory appellate remedy.

Important Clarification

CBIC's Notification No. 53/2023-Central Tax operates as a one-time relaxation of the limitation period under Section 107 of the CGST Act, 2017, enabling taxpayers who missed the original appeal window to file appeals in Form GST APL-01 up to 31 January 2024, subject to the conditions specified in the Notification.

Sections Involved

  • Section 107 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 — limitation for filing appeals before the Appellate Authority.
  • Notification No. 53/2023-Central Tax, dated 2 November 2023 — amnesty scheme for belated appeals.

Decision – In Favour of

This is a thin, procedural order granting the Assessee liberty to avail a statutory amnesty scheme rather than a decision on merits. It may fairly be treated as favourable to the Assessee to the limited extent of enabling access to the appellate remedy, but it does not decide the underlying tax dispute one way or the other. The Court refrained from commenting on the correctness of the original assessment, leaving the Appellate Authority to examine the demand afresh once the belated appeal is filed. Taxpayers facing similar limitation difficulties across the country have relied on this and comparable orders to seek the same benefit under the CBIC amnesty framework, underscoring the practical importance of such procedural relief even where no substantive question of law is decided.

Related Case Laws

No directly on-point case notes are currently published on this site.

Case Details

  • Court: High Court of Judicature at Allahabad
  • Case No.: Writ Tax No. 264 of 2023
  • CNR: Not available (Neutral Citation: 2023:AHC:234880)
  • Coram: Hon'ble Mr. Justice Shekhar B. Saraf
  • Decision Date: 11 December 2023
  • Disposal Nature: Disposed of; liberty to avail benefit of CBIC amnesty Notification No. 53/2023

Link to Download the Order

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