Facts of the Case

The petitioner, M/s Ashirvad Food Products Private Limited, holding GSTIN 19AAECA9585B1ZH registered under the WBGST/CGST Act, 2017, found its GST portal status showing 'inactive', preventing it from making the mandatory pre-deposit for an appeal against an order dated 17th January, 2025 passed under Section 74 for the tax period April 2020 to March 2021. Though the appeal was filed offline as a workaround, it could not be validated without the online pre-deposit. The petitioner approached the Calcutta High Court seeking a direction to the Central Goods and Services Tax authority to restore portal access. During hearing, the Court impleaded the GST Network as a necessary party respondent to address the technical grievance.

Issues Involved

  1. Whether a taxpayer whose GST portal shows 'inactive' status can be denied the ability to file a valid appeal for want of online pre-deposit.
  2. Whether GSTN, as the portal administrator, is a necessary party to resolve such technical impediments.
  3. What interim protection is warranted for the assessee pending portal activation.

Petitioner's Arguments

  • The petitioner's registration was never cancelled, yet the portal's inactive status made it impossible to pay the pre-deposit required under Section 107 to validate the appeal filed offline.
  • Absent any fault on the petitioner's part, continuing to treat the appeal as invalid for a portal-side technical failure would cause irreparable prejudice.
  • GSTN, being the entity responsible for the technical architecture of the common portal, ought to be directed to activate the account so that the statutory remedy of appeal is not rendered illusory.

Respondent's Arguments

  • The State's counsel confirmed on instructions that the petitioner's registration had not been cancelled and was merely shown as inactive at present.
  • The GSTN's counsel sought time to obtain instructions on the technical cause of inactivation and the steps needed to restore portal access.

Court Order / Findings

  • Since GSTN's counsel remained without instructions even after being granted time, the Court held that no useful purpose would be served by keeping the writ petition pending.
  • The added respondent-GSTN was directed to activate the petitioner's portal within four weeks so the pre-deposit could be paid and the appeal regularised.
  • The impugned order dated 17th January, 2025 was directed to remain stayed for six weeks, or two weeks after portal activation, whichever is later, but not beyond the end of November 2025.
  • Once activated, the petitioner was directed to pay the pre-deposit, whereupon the appeal would be regularised and heard on merits, and the writ petition was disposed of without costs.

Important Clarification

  • A portal-side 'inactive' status is not equivalent to cancellation of GST registration and cannot be used to defeat a taxpayer's statutory right of appeal.
  • Where the online pre-deposit mechanism is unavailable due to a technical glitch, courts can compel GSTN to restore access rather than penalise the assessee for a system failure.
  • An offline appeal filed in compelling circumstances can be treated as validly instituted once the pre-deposit is regularised, preserving the appellant's right to a hearing on merits.

Sections Involved

  • Section 74, CGST Act, 2017 – determination of tax for fraud or wilful misstatement cases, under which the original order was passed.
  • Section 107, CGST Act, 2017 – governs filing of appeals to the Appellate Authority, including the mandatory pre-deposit.

Decision – In Favour of

The decision favours the petitioner-assessee. The writ petition was disposed of with a direction to GSTN to activate the portal, interim stay of the impugned order, and regularisation of the appeal for hearing on merits.

Case Details

High Court at Calcutta; WPA 12105 of 2025; M/s Ashirvad Food Products Private Limited vs Additional/Joint Commissioner, Central Goods and Services Tax, Bolpur & Ors.; Coram: Justice Raja Basu Chowdhury; Order dated 26.09.2025.

Link to Download the Order

Click here to view/download the full order

Disclaimer

This content is shared strictly for general information and knowledge purposes only. Readers should independently verify the information from reliable sources. It is not intended to provide legal, professional, or advisory guidance. The author and the organisation disclaim all liability arising from the use of this content. The material has been prepared with the assistance of AI tools.