Doublelife Rubber Ind. Vs India and Union of others (Punjab & Haryana High Court)
Punjab and Haryana High Court has disposed of a writ petition filed by Doublelife Rubber Ind., allowing the company to seek rectification of past orders concerning Input Tax Credit (ITC) availment under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime.
The case CWP-14569-2024 dealt with the disallowance of ITC, likely based on the time limits stipulated under the original provisions of Section 16 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017.
A significant development cited before the court was a circular issued by the Ministry of Finance on October 15, 2024. This circular clarified the implementation of sub-sections (5) and (6) of Section 16 of the CGST Act, which were inserted retrospectively from July 1, 2017, by the Finance Act, 2024.
According to the circular, the retrospective changes have effectively extended the time limit for availing ITC as per Section 16(4). Crucially, the circular provides a mechanism for taxpayers whose ITC was previously disallowed through orders under Sections 73, 74, 107, or 108 of the CGST Act.
These taxpayers are now permitted to apply for rectification of such orders. A special procedure under Section 148 of the Act, notified vide Notification No. 22/2024 – Central tax dated October 8, 2024, facilitates this process.
The court noted that taxpayers have a window of six months from the date of the notification (October 8, 2024) to file these rectification applications. This sets the deadline for applications at April 15, 2025.
In light of these new provisions and the clarification, the High Court decided to dispose of Doublelife Rubber Ind.’s petition. The court granted the petitioner the liberty to file a rectification application according to the special procedure. The court also stated its expectation that any such application would be decided in adherence to the newly inserted provisions of sub-sections (5) and (6) of Section 16 of the CGST Act.
No specific judicial precedents predating the new legislative changes were discussed or relied upon in the provided text of the order. The court’s decision is primarily based on the retrospective amendments introduced by the Finance Act, 2024, and the subsequent clarifying circular and notification.
FULL TEXT OF THE JUDGMENT/ORDER OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA HIGH COURT
