Tvl. Chennais Pet Vs State Tax Officer (Madras High Court)
Madras High Court has ruled that an appeal cannot be dismissed solely due to a procedural delay when the assessee has complied with all statutory requirements, including the mandatory pre-deposit. The case involved Tvl. Chennais Pet challenging the rejection of its appeal by the State Tax Officer due to a delay of 35 days in filing. The petitioner claimed that it was unaware of the proceedings as the notice was uploaded in the additional notices column of the GST portal, leading to a missed deadline. The appeal was filed as soon as the petitioner became aware, along with a condonation request and a pre-deposit under Section 107(6) of the GST Act, 2017.
The appellate authority rejected the appeal on the grounds that the delay exceeded the condonable period by five days. The government counsel argued that taxpayers are responsible for monitoring the GST portal, and the rejection was valid as per statutory time limits. However, the petitioner had already deposited 25% of the disputed tax demand, showing compliance with legal obligations. The court noted that while procedural compliance is important, justice should not be denied solely on technical grounds, especially when a taxpayer has demonstrated good faith.
