Case Law Details
Nokia India Vs Union of India (Patna High Court)
In a recent judgment, the Patna High Court deliberated on the case of Vishwanath Traders, represented by its proprietor Ajay Kumar, against the Union of India. The crux of the matter was an appellate order dated 17.10.2022, which rejected the appeal due to a significant delay. The original order of assessment (Annexure-1) was passed on 12.03.2022. This article provides a detailed analysis of the judgment.
The heart of the issue lay in Section 107 of the Bihar Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 (BGST Act), which allows for an appeal to be filed within three months and permits an application for delay condonation with valid reasons within an additional one-month period. It is crucial to note that the Appellate Authority considered the provisions of this section.
Furthermore, the judgment took into account the exceptional circumstances created by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Hon’ble Supreme Court, in Suo Motu Writ Petition (C) No. 3 of 2020, had granted relief by extending the limitation period from 15.03.2020 to 28.02.2022. Additionally, the Supreme Court directed that appeals could be filed within ninety days from 01.03.2022. This effectively meant that an appeal could have been filed until 29.05.2022, adhering to the extended limitation period. However, the petitioner, Ajay Kumar, filed the appeal only on 08.08.2022, which amounted to a delay of two months and nineteen days beyond the extended deadline.
The High Court, in its wisdom, held that there was no justification to invoke the extraordinary jurisdiction under Article 226 of the Indian Constitution. This decision was especially significant because alternate remedies were available to the petitioner, and they had not been diligent in utilizing these remedies within the stipulated time frame.
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