Facts of the Case

The petitioner, Sri Sudarshan B Badiger, proprietor of M/s Yuvaraj Builders, Kalaburagi, was aggrieved by an order of cancellation of GST registration in Form GST REG-19 dated 18.09.2024, passed by the Superintendent of Central Tax and Central Excise, Range-A, Gulbarga Division, on the ground that he had not responded to the show cause notice preceding cancellation. The petitioner's subsequent appeal before the Joint Commissioner of Central Tax and Central Excise (Appeals), Belgavi Division, was also rejected as barred by limitation, vide Order-in-Appeal No. 574/2025/BM/GST dated 09.09.2025, leaving the petitioner without a functioning GST registration and no apparent remedy before the appellate authority.

Issues Involved

  1. Whether the cancellation of GST registration and the consequent rejection of the appeal as time-barred should be quashed on parity with a coordinate Bench ruling on identical facts.

Petitioner's Arguments

  • The petitioner's facts were identical to those in an earlier order dated 28.08.2024 of a coordinate Bench of the same Court in W.P.No.21725/2024, and on the principle of parity, the present petition should be allowed on the same lines.

Respondent's Arguments

  • Learned counsel for the respondents, appearing through video conferencing, did not dispute the factual and legal position placed on record by the petitioner.

Court Order / Findings

  • Noting that the coordinate Bench, under an identical factual situation, had quashed both the cancellation order and the appellate order and directed reinstatement of the GST registration, the Court held that the petitioner, being similarly situated, was equally entitled to the same relief.
  • The Order-in-Appeal dated 09.09.2025 and the cancellation order dated 18.09.2024 were quashed, and the writ petition was allowed.
  • The respondent authorities were directed to reinstate/restore the petitioner's GST registration within four weeks of receipt of the certified copy of the order, subject to the petitioner filing GST returns and paying up-to-date tax, together with interest, within that period.

Important Clarification

  • Where a coordinate Bench of the same High Court has already quashed a registration cancellation and directed restoration on identical facts, a subsequent petitioner in the same factual situation is entitled to parity of treatment without the Court needing to re-examine the merits afresh.
  • Restoration of a cancelled GST registration by court order is regularly made conditional on the assessee bringing its return filings and tax payments up to date, ensuring the relief does not become a means to avoid compliance.
  • An appeal against a registration cancellation being time-barred does not permanently foreclose relief where a parity-based writ challenge succeeds; the writ court can quash both the original cancellation and the time-barred appellate rejection together, restoring the assessee to a functioning registration.

Sections Involved

  • FORM GST REG-19 – order of cancellation of registration.
  • GST registration cancellation and restoration framework under the CGST/KGST Act, requiring compliance with return filing and tax payment as a condition for restoration.

Decision – In Favour of

Allowed in favour of the Assessee — the cancellation and appellate rejection were quashed, with restoration of registration directed subject to filing returns and paying tax due.

Case Details

  • Court: High Court of Karnataka, Kalaburagi Bench
  • Case No.: Writ Petition No. 203013 of 2025 (T-RES)
  • Neutral Citation: NC: 2025:KHC-K:6134
  • Coram: Hon'ble Mr. Justice M.G.S. Kamal
  • Date of Order: 16 October 2025

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