Facts of the Case

The petitioner, M/s Flyworld Com, Bhubaneswar, challenged an order dated 30th December 2023 passed under Section 73 of the CGST/OGST Act, 2017 for tax periods July 2017 to March 2018, which was affirmed in appeal by the Joint Commissioner (Appeal) on 16th November 2024. Since the statutory second appellate forum, the GST Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT), was not constituted or functional at the relevant time, the petitioner could not avail the remedy under Section 112 and instead approached the High Court under Article 226. By the time of hearing, the GSTAT had become operational, and the Government had notified a staggered ARN/CRN-based filing schedule extending up to 30th June 2026.

Issues Involved

  1. Whether a writ petition is maintainable to challenge an appellate order where the GSTAT was not constituted or functional.
  2. Whether such non-constitution excuses compliance with the mandatory pre-deposit under Section 112(8).
  3. What directions are appropriate now that the GSTAT has become functional with a notified filing schedule.

Petitioner's Arguments

  • The GSTAT not being constituted or functional, the statutory remedy under Section 112 was unavailable, justifying invocation of writ jurisdiction against the appellate order.
  • The petitioner should not be left remediless merely because the Tribunal had not been set up.

Respondent's Arguments

  • The department's counsel corroborated that the GSTAT was not constituted at the relevant time but argued this does not excuse compliance with the mandatory pre-deposit under Section 112(8) once the appeal is filed.
  • Reliance was placed on the notification dated 17.09.2025 and the GSTAT e-filing portal's staggered timeline extending up to 30.06.2026.

Court Order / Findings

  • The Court reiterated the settled position that writ jurisdiction may be invoked when a statutory forum is non-functional, but held that conditions attached to that remedy, such as pre-deposit, must be strictly complied with once the forum becomes available.
  • Since the GSTAT has since become functional with a staggered filing schedule notified up to 30 June 2026, the Court declined to keep the writ pending and directed the petitioner to deposit the amount required under Section 112(8) and file the appeal within the notified timeline, expressly clarifying that no opinion was expressed on the merits of the first appellate order.

Important Clarification

  • With the GST Appellate Tribunal now functional and a staggered, ARN/CRN-based filing window notified (extending to 30 June 2026 for older orders), writ petitions filed solely due to GSTAT's earlier non-constitution are being disposed of with directions to avail the statutory appeal.
  • Compliance with the Section 112(8) pre-deposit — full admitted tax plus 10% of the disputed remaining tax, capped at Rs.20 crore — remains mandatory and is not excused by the Tribunal's earlier non-functionality.

Sections Involved

  • Section 112(8), CGST Act, 2017 – mandatory pre-deposit before filing appeal before the GSTAT.
  • Section 107, CGST Act, 2017 – first appellate remedy and pre-deposit under sub-section (6).
  • Section 73, CGST/OGST Act, 2017 – original demand order under challenge.

Decision – In Favour of

Disposed of with directions, in part in favour of the department — the assessee was directed to comply with the statutory pre-deposit and pursue the GSTAT appeal, with the merits of the demand left entirely open.

Case Details

High Court of Orissa at Cuttack; W.P.(C) No.2207 of 2025; Coram: Hon'ble the Chief Justice and Hon'ble Mr Justice Murahari Sri Raman; Date: 23.03.2026.

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