Anil Kumar Singh Vs Director (GSTAT Kolkata Bench)
Summary: The Goods and Services Tax Appellate Tribunal, Kolkata Bench dismissed Revenue appeals bearing APL/10/KLK/2026 and APL/14/KLK/2026 filed against orders of the first Appellate Authority allowing refund claims of M/s Agarwala’s Bitumex Private Limited. The Tribunal upheld the impugned appellate orders and rejected the Revenue’s challenge to refund of accumulated input tax credit (ITC).
The respondent was engaged in supply of iron/non-alloy steel bars and rods and bitumen and also exported the goods outside India. It claimed refund of accumulated ITC under Section 54 of the CGST Act, 2017, amounting to Rs.11,41,828/- for January 2025 and Rs.27,65,697/- for February 2025. The original adjudicating authority rejected both claims, but the first Appellate Authority allowed them and set aside the original orders.
Before GSTAT, the Revenue alleged discrepancies in the inward supply chain. It relied principally on toll-plaza movement data showing that the consignments had not crossed toll gates in West Bengal although the principal supplier, M/s KS Metals Pvt. Ltd., was Kolkata-based. Revenue also alleged that KS Metals had procured goods from suppliers whose registrations had been cancelled ab initio and contended that the resulting ITC was ineligible under Section 16. Additional allegations concerning customs verification, investigations, supplier licences and alleged fake ITC were also raised before the Tribunal.
