Green Filed Agrotech Vs State of West Bengal & Ors. (Calcutta High Court)
GST Appeal Delay: Calcutta HC Allows Condonation Beyond 120 Days
1. The petitioner, Green Field Agrotech, who were not satisfied with a tax order under Section 73(10) of the WBGST passed on December 5, 2023,
2. To challenge this order, the petitioner filed an appeal on May 15, 2024, after depositing 10% of the disputed tax amount.
3. However, this appeal was filed 42 days late beyond the prescribed time limit as mentioned in section 107(1) and 107(4)
4. Under Section 107(1), an appeal must be filed within three months from the date of order communicated to the assess, with an additional one-month extension u/s 107(4) may be allowed for delay, but not beyond that for the sufficient cause. So, in total maximum period under which one should file an appeal is shown below
Time allowed for appeal by default (Section 107(1)) → 90 days
Maximum condonation period (Section 107(4)) → 30 days
Total maximum period to file an appeal → 120 days
5. The GST appellate authority i.e. department rejected the appeal on June 26, 2024 by stating that they did not have the power to condone (excuse) a delay of more than one month beyond the prescribed limit mentioned in 107(4).
