Three-Month GST Appeal Delay Cannot Be Condoned Beyond Section 107(4): SC

Multi Trading Agencies Drangbal Vs Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir & Anr. (Supreme Court of India)

Summary: The Supreme Court dismissed the Special Leave Petition filed by Multi Trading Agencies Drangbal against the Jammu & Kashmir High Court’s refusal to interfere with rejection of its delayed GST appeal. The High Court had held that an Appellate Authority under Section 107 of the Jammu & Kashmir Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 cannot condone delay beyond the additional one-month period permitted by Section 107(4). Although the High Court recognised that its extraordinary jurisdiction under Article 226 could, in an exceptional case involving gross injustice, be exercised notwithstanding the statutory limitation, it found no exceptional circumstances in the petitioner’s case. Before the Supreme Court, the delay involved was three months beyond the statutory condonable period. The Supreme Court expressly relied on Section 107(4), held that such delay could not be condoned and found no case for interference with the High Court’s order. The SLP was consequently dismissed, leaving the High Court’s decision undisturbed.

High Court Proceedings: Statutory Appellate Authority Has Maximum Four-Month Window

The litigation arose from a batch of writ petitions filed by dealers registered under the Jammu & Kashmir Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017. Assessment orders had been passed against them under Sections 73/74 and their statutory appeals under Section 107 were rejected because they had been filed beyond limitation.