Ranjeet Kumar Poddar Vs Superintendent (Calcutta High Court)
In the matter of Ranjeet Kumar Poddar vs. Superintendent, the Calcutta High Court considered a writ petition challenging the cancellation of the petitioner’s GST registration under the Central and West Bengal Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017. The registration was cancelled by an order dated 6th September 2024. The petitioner argued that the cancellation was carried out without affording a proper opportunity to respond to the show-cause notice and claimed that the order was passed on grounds not mentioned in the original notice.
In response, counsel for the GST authorities pointed out that the GST Act provides a statutory remedy under Section 30, which allows a taxpayer to apply for revocation of the cancellation of registration. It was highlighted that the petitioner had not availed of this remedy before approaching the court. After reviewing the submissions and facts, the High Court found that although there may have been procedural lapses in handling the show-cause process, the petitioner had waited nearly three months before filing the writ. The court noted that Section 30 provides an adequate course of redress.
Accordingly, the Calcutta High Court directed the petitioner to file an application for revocation of the cancellation within two weeks. It further instructed the GST authorities to consider the application on its merits, provide an opportunity for a hearing, and issue a reasoned order within three weeks of receiving the application. The writ petition was disposed of without further costs, with the court emphasizing the importance of following the statutory remedies outlined in the GST framework.
