In the recent case, the High Court of Madras condoned the delay in filing a GST appeal caused by septic shock. The petitioner, had cleared the entire tax liability but was unable to meet the appeal deadline due to medical complications
Great Heights Developers LLP,the petitioner-assessee, challenged the order dated 14.08.2023, which imposed a penalty of Rs. 30,98,857/- and interest under Sections 73(9) and 50(1) of the Central Goods and Service Tax/State Goods and Service Tax( CGST/SGST ) Acts, 2017. A writ petition was filed under Article 226 of the Constitution to quash this order.
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The assessment order was issued on 14.08.2023 and received on 16.08.2023, with the appeal due within 90 days. The petitioner could not file the appeal on time due to septic shock and related complications. Consequently, the deadline for filing the appeal and a delay condonation application expired on 16.12.2023.
Section 107 of the CGST Act deals with the appeal process and outlines the powers of the Appellate Authority ( AA ). Specifically, it provides that the Appellate Authority can entertain an appeal only if it is filed within three months from the date of receipt of the order. The authority has the discretion to condone a delay in filing the appeal beyond this period but is restricted from condoning a delay beyond 120 days from the expiry of the initial three-month period.
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The court noted that the period of further delay in this case was only 24 days, and the petitioner had provided valid reasons to justify the delay. It was also observed that the petitioner had already paid the entire tax liability, and the proposed appeal was limited to contesting the penalty and interest.
A single bench of Justice Senthilkumar Ramamoorthy directed the AA that if the appeal was submitted within ten days from the receipt of the order, it should be accepted and decided on its merits.
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