Heal Health Connect Solutions Private Limited Vs Commissioner Delhi Goods And Services Tax And Ors (Delhi High Court)
Delhi High Court, in the case of Heal Health Connect Solutions Private Limited Vs Commissioner Delhi Goods And Services Tax And Ors, heard a petition challenging a Show Cause Notice (SCN) dated December 5, 2023, and a subsequent Demand Order dated February 20, 2024. The core dispute revolved around the rejection of Input Tax Credit (ITC) claimed by the petitioner for the periods of February 2019 and March 2019.
The Issue and Petitioner’s Argument
The Demand Order rejected the ITC claim under Section 16(4) of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, asserting that the due date for furnishing the return for the relevant financial year (FY 2018-19) was October 20, 2019, and the petitioner had availed the ITC after this date. The amount proposed for recovery was substantial, totaling ₹40,947 (for Feb 2019) and ₹7,29,423 (for Mar 2019) in CGST, SGST, and IGST combined.
The petitioner’s counsel argued that the Demand Order incorrectly applied the original limit under Section 16(4). They contended that Section 16(5) of the Act, which was a specific amendment, clearly extended the limitation period for taking ITC pertaining to the Financial Years 2017-18, 2018-19, 2019-20, and 2020-21, until the thirtieth day of November, 2021. Since the claimed ITC pertained to FY 2018-19, and the relevant returns were filed on October 25, 2019, the claim was prima facie admissible under the extended timeline of Section 16(5). The petitioner further indicated a willingness to avail the statutory remedy of appeal under Section 107 but sought a waiver of the mandatory pre-deposit requirement, citing their prima facie entitlement to the ITC.
