Anukul Bindal Vs Union Of India And 3 Others (Allahabad High Court)
The Allahabad High Court considered a writ petition concerning the applicability of the amended Section 107(6) of the CGST Act, 2017, which requires a pre-deposit of 10% of the penalty amount for maintaining an appeal. The petitioner argued that the right to appeal had vested on March 31, 2023, when the show cause notice was issued, and therefore could not be altered by a subsequent amendment that came into force on October 1, 2025. It was contended that the amended requirement could not be imposed retrospectively on a vested right of appeal. The petitioner further submitted that the unamended proviso to Section 107(6) was confined to penalties under Section 129 and would not otherwise apply. Reliance was placed on the Supreme Court’s decision in Hoosein Kasam Dada (India) Limited v. State of Madhya Pradesh. The revenue opposed the plea by relying on the Supreme Court’s decision in Chandra Sekhar Jha v. Union of India and a coordinate bench decision in M/s Ganesh Yadav v. Union of India. The High Court observed that the petitioner’s submissions appeared to be covered by the principles laid down in Hoosein Kasam Dada and found that the matter required consideration. The Court granted the revenue four weeks to file a counter affidavit and two weeks thereafter to the petitioner for a rejoinder. As an interim measure, the Court directed that if the petitioner files the appeal within two weeks, it shall be entertained without requiring the 10% pre-deposit, while noting that the Court retains jurisdiction to grant waiver in appropriate cases.
