Mandy Enterprises Proprietorship Concern Vs Deputy Commissioner (Delhi High Court)
Deceased Proprietor’s Heir Sues for GST Refund
In a significant ruling, the Delhi High Court has directed the tax authorities to immediately process a GST refund of ₹28,84,115 to the legal heir of a deceased proprietor, Mandeep Singh Batra. The court found that the Deputy Commissioner was unlawfully withholding the refund despite an appellate authority’s clear directive.
Mandeep Singh Batra, who passed away on October 10, 2021, was the sole proprietor of M/s Mandy Enterprises, a waste management business. Following his death, his widow, Mrs. Neera Batra, applied for a refund of the amount lying in the electronic cash register of the proprietorship concern. The application, filed on June 14, 2023, was initially rejected by the adjudicating authority.
The rejection was based on an alleged non-compliance with Sub-section (6) of Section 49 of the Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) Act, 2017. Mrs. Batra, as the legal heir with a succession certificate, contested this decision by appealing to the appellate authority.
Appellate Authority Overturns Initial Rejection
The appellate authority reviewed the case and found that the adjudicating authority’s grounds for rejection were unsustainable. On January 21, 2024, it issued an order directing the adjudicating authority to process the refund. The order explicitly stated that the initial rejection was an error in law and that the amount should be refunded to the firm’s bank account, where Mrs. Neera Batra was the legal heir.
