Marvin Enterprise Vs State of Gujarat & Ors. (Gujarat High Court)
Supreme Court’s COVID Limitation Exclusion Applies to GST Appeals and Cannot Be Rejected as Time-Barred
In Marvin Enterprise v. State of Gujarat & Ors., the Gujarat High Court held that the limitation exclusion granted by the Supreme Court during the COVID-19 pandemic must be considered while computing the limitation period for filing GST appeals under Section 107 of the CGST Act. The petitioner’s GST registration was cancelled on January 1, 2022, and its appeal filed on June 6, 2022 was rejected as time-barred by the appellate authority. The Court observed that the Supreme Court had directed exclusion of the period from March 15, 2020 to February 28, 2022 for limitation purposes in all judicial and quasi-judicial proceedings. Consequently, the limitation period in the present case commenced from March 1, 2022, making the appeal fall within the condonable period of 120 days prescribed under Section 107(4). Holding that the appellate authority wrongly treated the appeal as beyond limitation, the Court quashed the order and remanded the matter for consideration of delay condonation and adjudication on merits.
Facts:
Marvin Enterprise (“the Petitioner”), a proprietary concern engaged in trading of chemical products, was registered under GST and received a show-cause notice alleging issuance of invoices without supply of goods. Despite submitting a reply, its GST registration was cancelled by order dated January 01, 2022.
