Govt Contractor seeks Direction to Govt to Pay GST on his Behalf: Allahabad HC Dismisses Plea [Read Order]

The Allahabad High Court recently dismissed a writ petition filed by a government contractor, seeking a direction to the State Government to pay Goods and Services Tax (GST) and related dues on its behalf.

The petitioner, M/S Shree Dev Builders And Construction Pvt. Ltd. had sought a writ of mandamus directing the authorities to discharge the entire tax and interest liability raised through an assessment order dated 8 January 2025, and to withhold coercive recovery actions till such payment was made by the Government.

A Division Bench comprising Justice Sangeeta Chandra and Justice Brij Raj Singh noted that the petitioner had previously challenged the same assessment order in Writ Tax No. 357 of 2025, which had already been disposed of by the Court.

In that order, the Court had clearly observed that the impugned assessment was passed under Section 74(9) of the U.P. GST Act, 2017, and therefore, was appealable under Section 107 of the Act.

The Bench said that once such a statutory remedy was available, a fresh writ petition could not be entertained to bypass the appeal process.

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The counsel for the State raised a preliminary objection, stating that instead of availing the appellate remedy, the petitioner had approached the Court again with a request for the Government to pay GST on its behalf, contrary to law.

The State contended that the contractor’s liability under the GST arises independently and cannot be transferred to the Government through judicial directions.

The Court, rejecting the plea, observed that the petitioner’s argument that GST should be borne by the “ultimate consumer,” i.e., the Government was untenable.

The Bench clarified that tax liability is determined under statutory provisions, and if the petitioner was aggrieved by the assessment order, it ought to approach the appropriate Appellate Authority rather than seeking judicial intervention through a writ.

The Court ruled that since the assessment order dated 8 January 2025 had neither been appealed nor stayed by any competent authority, no mandamus could be issued to compel the Government to act contrary to law.

Accordingly, the writ petition was dismissed, with the Court reiterating that the proper remedy lies under Section 107 of the U.P. GST Act.

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