GST Appeal Rejection Over Limitation Set Aside for Lack of Upload Date Inquiry

Megacity Cement Pvt. Ltd. & Anr. Vs Deputy Commissioner (Calcutta High Court)

The writ petition was filed challenging two orders: (i) an appellate order dated 23rd May 2023 passed under Section 107 of the WBGST Act/CGST Act dismissing the petitioners’ appeal against an order dated 10th March 2022 passed under Section 74 of the Act, and (ii) an order dated 31st January 2025 passed under Section 74.

Although the petitioners approached the Court belatedly, they provided an explanation in the writ petition and argued that they would otherwise be remediless since the GST Tribunal—before which the appeal could have been filed—was not functional. The Court held that the explanation for the delay was sufficient and entertained the writ petition.

The appellate authority had rejected the petitioners’ appeal on the ground of limitation. The petitioners contended that they could not have known of the order dated 10th March 2022 before 25th August 2022 because the order was uploaded on the GST portal only on that date. They argued that only a summary order had been uploaded, the detailed order was never made available, and since the appeal was filed on 28th August 2022—three days after the upload—the appeal was within time.