Facts of the Case

The petitioner, M/s Dutha Pati Traders, had its GST registration cancelled by order dated 21.03.2020 for non-filing of returns and non-payment of taxes, pursuant to a show cause notice in Form GST REG-17 dated 07.03.2020. An appellate endorsement dated 27.01.2025 further affected the petitioner's position. The petitioner approached the High Court challenging both the cancellation order and the endorsement.

Issues Involved

  1. Whether the petitioner, having suffered cancellation of GST registration in 2020, could still be granted a route to seek restoration in 2025.
  2. What conditions should attach to any such restoration in the interest of revenue.

Petitioner's Arguments

  • The show cause notice in Form GST REG-17 dated 07.03.2020, the cancellation order dated 21.03.2020, and the appellate endorsement dated 27.01.2025 were liable to be set aside, and the petitioner sought suspension of the cancellation pending restoration.

Respondent's Arguments

  • Learned Government Pleader for Commercial Tax appeared for the respondents; the order does not record a specific opposing contention beyond the Department's general stance.

Court Order / Findings

  • The Court noted that, in a similar circumstance, it had by an earlier order dated 16.10.2024 in W.P.No.18308 of 2024 disposed of a comparable writ petition with certain directions.
  • Following that precedent, the writ petition was disposed of with directions: the petitioner shall file an application for revocation; file draft returns proposed to be filed if registration is restored; and deposit all taxes due on or before a fixed date (03.07.2025).
  • The registering authority was directed to receive payment of such taxes prior to considering the revocation application, and to pass orders on the revocation application within 15 days of receipt.
  • If the plea is accepted, the registration shall be restored and the petitioner shall file all returns due till that date; if there is any difficulty in filing the application online, manual filing was permitted, which the respondent was directed to accept.

Important Clarification

  • Even a cancellation of GST registration dating back several years (here, 2020) can be revisited through a structured restoration route directed by the writ court, so long as the taxpayer is willing to file the revocation application, submit all pending/draft returns, and clear the tax dues by a fixed deadline.
  • Courts have institutionalised this template — deposit of dues, filing of the revocation application, a time-bound decision by the registering authority, and a fallback to manual filing where the online system poses difficulties — as a standard mechanism for restoring long-cancelled registrations in the interest of revenue collection.

Sections Involved

  • Form GST REG-17, GST Rules, 2017 – show cause notice format for proposed cancellation of registration.
  • Revocation of Cancellation of Registration, GST Act, 2017 – the statutory mechanism the petitioner was directed to invoke, subject to payment of dues and filing of returns.

Decision – In Favour of

The petition is disposed of in favour of the Assessee, granting a conditional and time-bound route to seek restoration of the cancelled GST registration.

Case Details

  • Court: High Court of Andhra Pradesh at Amaravati
  • Case No.: Writ Petition No. 11392 of 2025
  • CNR: APHC010218632025
  • Coram: Hon'ble Sri Justice R. Raghunandan Rao and Hon'ble Smt Justice Sumathi Jagadam
  • Date of Order: 18.06.2025

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