V. S. Enterprises Vs Union of India (Jharkhand High Court)
The Jharkhand High Court dismissed a writ petition challenging orders passed under Sections 73 and 79 of the CGST Act, 2017, on the ground of delay and availability of an alternate statutory remedy. The petitioner had challenged an Order-in-Original dated August 26, 2024 and consequential orders, but had not filed a statutory appeal within the prescribed time.
Under Section 107 of the CGST Act, the limitation period for filing an appeal is 90 days, extendable by an additional 30 days upon sufficient cause, making a total of 120 days. The Court noted that the petitioner failed to file any appeal within this period and instead approached the High Court by way of writ petition on February 27, 2026, well beyond the permissible time limit.
Relying on Supreme Court decisions in Assistant Commissioner v. Glaxo Smith Kline Consumer Health Care Limited and Rikhab Chand Jain v. Union of India, the Court reiterated that writ jurisdiction under Article 226 should not ordinarily be exercised when an effective statutory remedy exists. It further held that a party who fails to avail such remedy within the prescribed time cannot subsequently invoke writ jurisdiction to bypass statutory limitations.
