Shri Vijay Laxmi Traders Vs Union of India (Rajasthan High Court)
The petition was decided by the Rajasthan High Court. The Court noted that the issue raised in the present writ petition was identical to a batch of petitions earlier decided in Eagle Trans Shipping & Logistics India Private Limited vs Union of India & Ors. and connected matters.
In the earlier batch, the Court had observed that replies to show cause notices issued under Section 73 of the CGST Act, 2017 had already been filed and adjudication had been completed. Since a statutory appellate remedy was available under Section 107 of the DGST Act, SGST Act, and CGST Act, the Court had declined to interfere with the adjudication orders on merits. However, it had kept open the issue relating to the validity of notifications issued under Section 168A of the CGST Act, noting that the same was under consideration before the Supreme Court in a pending Special Leave Petition. Petitioners were permitted either to await the Supreme Court’s decision or to challenge the orders on merits in appeal, with protection against limitation if the appeal was filed within the stipulated time granted by the Court.
In the present case, although the issue was identical, the Court noted that the statutory period for filing an appeal under Section 107 had already expired. The petitioner explained that the appeal was not filed earlier due to the pendency of proceedings concerning Section 168A of the CGST Act.
