Parle Biscuits (P.) Ltd Vs State of Haryana (Punjab and Haryana High court)
The Punjab and Haryana High Court ruled that dismissing a GST appeal for non-prosecution is unlawful and remanded the case for a decision on merits. In the case of Parle Biscuits (P.) Ltd vs. State of Haryana, the petitioner challenged the dismissal of its appeal against a tax and penalty demand of ₹5,30,724, imposed under Section 20 of the IGST Act, 2017, read with Section 129(1)(a) of the HGST Act, 2017. The appellate authority had dismissed the appeal on January 2, 2024, citing a Supreme Court judgment (Ram Naresh Yadav, AIR 1987 SC 1500), due to the petitioner’s absence on December 13, 2023. The High Court ruled that administrative appeals should be handled differently from regular court cases, and since the appeal memo was available, the case should have been decided on merits. The Court set aside the dismissal and directed the appellate authority to re-examine the case, allowing the petitioner to appear if desired.
FULL TEXT OF THE JUDGMENT/ORDER OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA HIGH COURT
1. Matter comes up on application No.CM-19200-CWP-2024 moved by the petitioner seeking preponement of the main case.
2. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the only point involved in the present petition is whether the appeal filed by the petitioner could be dismissed for non-prosecution.
