Smt Jumoni Boruah Phukan Vs Union of India And 2 Ors (Gauhati High Court)
The Gauhati High Court disposed of a writ petition challenging the cancellation of the petitioner’s GST registration, holding that the petitioner should be granted an opportunity to seek restoration of registration upon complying with the requirements under the proviso to Rule 22(4) of the CGST Rules, 2017.
The petitioner challenged the order dated 25.04.2024 issued by the Superintendent, CGST, Golaghat I Range, cancelling the GST registration. The petitioner, a proprietor engaged in Works Contract Services and retail business, stated that she was duly registered under the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 and the Assam Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017.
The petitioner submitted that a show cause notice dated 05.02.2024 had been issued for non-filing of GST returns for a continuous period of six months. The notice required a reply within 30 days and appearance on 04.03.2024, failing which the matter would be decided ex parte. The petitioner’s GST registration was suspended with effect from 05.02.2024 and was subsequently cancelled on 25.04.2024 without assigning any reason.
The petitioner explained that the GST returns could not be filed due to acute financial hardship. It was submitted that although the petitioner attempted to file an application for revocation of cancellation, the prescribed time limit for filing such an application had already expired. The petitioner further stated that the defaults had since been rectified and all pending GST returns had been updated up to April 2024.
