Distinct Legal issues require Separate Adjudication: Kerala HC recalls Judgment for Wrong Clubbing of GST Cases [Read Order]

In a recent ruling, the Kerala High Court recalled its judgment due to improper clubbing of distinct GST cases, restoring a writ petition concerning refund claims under the inverted tax structure scheme that was erroneously disposed of alongside cases challenging the constitutional validity of a Goods and Service Tax (GST) provision.

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The petitioner, P.M. Subair who is the Managing Partner of M/s. Ansar Oil Industries, filed a review petition challenging the 28.06.2024 judgment in W.P.(C) No. 5437 of 2023. The petitioner contended that his original writ petition, which sought reliefs related to refund claims under the inverted tax structure scheme, was wrongly disposed of alongside a batch of writ petitions that were exclusively challenging the validity of Section 16(2)(c) of the CGST/KSGST Act, 2017. He argued that his case involved entirely different legal issues and reliefs, which were never considered in the common judgment.

The respondents, including the Deputy Commissioner of Central Tax, Union of India, and other tax authorities, were represented by P.R. Sreejith, Senior Standing Counsel for CBIC.

The Single Bench of Justice Ziyad Rahman A.A., after examining the records, observed that there was a "patent error" in the impugned judgment. The Court found that the reliefs sought by the petitioner were fundamentally different from those in the batch of cases disposed of on 28.06.2024.

The petitioner's specific grievances regarding refund claims under the inverted tax structure were never addressed, as his case was clubbed with unrelated petitions challenging the validity of Section 16(2)(c).

The Court held that the issues raised by the petitioner were not considered in the common judgment, and the clubbing of cases was improper since the petitions were "not at all connected." Finding merit in the review petition, the Court recalled its judgment dated 28.06.2024 in W.P.(C) No. 5437/2023 and restored the original writ petition to the file for fresh adjudication.

The Court directed that the restored writ petition be posted for hearing on 26.09.2025, ensuring that the petitioner's distinct legal issues regarding GST refund claims would be adjudicated separately.

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