The Allahabad High Court has held that while considering the fact that the period of limitation stood suspended by the Apex Court and the High Court from 15.3.2020 to 14.3.2021, that period shall be excluded while computing the statutory period for filing GST appeals.
The petitioner, J.K Infratech, challenged the order for cancellation of registration before the appellate authority. However, the said order was dismissed by invoking limitation period.
Meanwhile, Government of U.P. issued Government Order no. 792 dated 29.7.2020 providing, in cases involving facts such as those obtaining in the present case, the service of the orders would be deemed to have been made on 31.8.2020. relying on this, the petitioner argued that the period of limitation to institute appeal etc., stood suspended by various orders passed by the Supreme Court as also this Court and therefore, the period of limitation from 15.3.2020 to 14.3.2021 stood suspended.
Justice Saumitra Dayal Singh held that “In view of the above facts, the present petition deserves to be allowed as the limitation to file first appeal under Section 107 of the U.P. GST Act, 2017, was three months with delay condonable for a period of one month. Once the order dated 17.9.2019 is taken to have been served on the petitioner on 31.8.2020, then in view of the suspension of limitation from 15.3.2020 to 14.3.2021 the limitation to file the appeal would start running from 15.3.2021. In that case, the appeal having been filed on 19.3.2021, the same was wholly within time.”
While concluding the order, the Court opined that “For the reasons contained above, the impugned order dated 16.07.2021 passed by the appeal authority cannot be sustained. It is set aside. The matter is remitted to the appeal authority to proceed to hear and decide the appeal filed by the petitioner dated 19.3.2021, on merits, treating the same to have been filed within time.”
M/S J.K Infratech vs Additional Commissioner And Another
CITATION: 2022 TAXSCAN (HC) 183
Subscribe Taxscan Premium to view the JudgmentSupport our journalism by subscribing to Taxscan AdFree. Follow us on Telegram for quick updates.