Bhavna Luthra Vs Assistant Commissioner (Delhi High Court)
Delhi High Court expressed serious concern regarding the difficulties faced by Bhavna Luthra, widow of the proprietor of M/s Hunny Enterprises, in obtaining a GST refund. Following her husband’s demise, Ms. Luthra applied for cancellation of the GST registration, which was granted. However, a refund claim of ₹10,45,793/-, the excess balance in the firm’s electronic cash ledger, was rejected by the GST Department. Ms. Luthra previously approached the High Court, which directed the re-crediting of the refund amount. Despite this order, the refund was not processed. Instead, the GST Department issued a subsequent order rejecting the refund on the grounds that Ms. Luthra was not a registered person, citing her non-appearance for a personal hearing.
The High Court noted that this was the second time Ms. Luthra had to seek its intervention for the same refund. The court questioned the GST Department’s counsel about the delay, who stated that essential documents proving the husband’s death were not provided with the refund application. Ms. Luthra’s counsel countered that the death was already established in the GST registration cancellation order and that the funds in the electronic cash ledger rightfully belonged to her. The Court directed the concerned GST officer, Mr. Sanjay Kumar Bansal, Assistant Commissioner, to be physically present at the next hearing to explain the situation.
