Eversource Energy Services Vs Commissioner of Commercial Taxes (C.T.) and Goods and Service Tax (G.S.T.) (Orissa High Court)
GST Appeal Must Meet Section 112(8) Pre-Deposit Requirement Despite Earlier Non-Functional Tribunal; Orissa HC Refuses to Keep GST Writ Pending After GSTAT Operationalisation; GST Writ Petition Disposed of Because Effective Appellate Remedy Before GSTAT Now Exists; Orissa HC Directs Taxpayer to Approach GSTAT as Extended Appeal Timeline Available.
The petitioner challenged an order dated 1 January 2020 passed by the Additional CT & GST Officer, Cuttack I West Circle, Cuttack under Section 74 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 and the Odisha Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 for the tax periods from April 2018 to March 2019. The order had been affirmed by the Appellate Authority on 25 March 2025.
The petitioner contended that although a further appeal was available under Section 112 of the GST Act before the Goods and Services Tax Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT), the remedy could not be availed because the Tribunal had not been constituted and made functional. Consequently, the writ petition was filed before the High Court.
The CT & GST Department acknowledged that the GSTAT was not functional at the relevant time. However, it argued that the absence of the Tribunal did not exempt an appellant from complying with the mandatory pre-deposit requirement under Section 112(8) of the GST Act. The provision requires payment of the admitted amount of tax, interest, fine, fee, and penalty, along with ten percent of the remaining disputed tax amount, subject to a maximum limit of twenty crore rupees, before an appeal can be filed.
