Calcutta High Court restored time barred appeal as GST DRC-01 not seen on Portal

Calcutta High Court restored time barred appeal as GST DRC-01 not seen on Portal

In the case of M/s SSB Petro Products & Ors Vs Assistant Commissioner, Hon’ble Division bench of Calcutta High Court restored the filing of Time barred appeal by considering the facts and circumstances of the case.

Facts :

The First Respondent issues Form GST DRC-01A on 05.03.2021 mentioning the grounds and quantification along with the advised to pay the tax with applicable interest and penalty.The appellant filed their reply to show cause notice on 08.03.2021. The matter was not considered thereafter and kept pending.

On 16.09.2021, the Second Respondent from the same office Form GST DRC-01 online along with summary of show cause which shows the copy of detail notice as a separate attachment. The Appellant argued that he was not aware of this order and only come to know when sum of Rs. 1,84,930/- was paid from electronic credit ledger and immediately after that the appellant applied for copy of order and preferred an appeal but by then the period of limitation for filing the appeal had expired.

Issue :

The crucial issue would be as to whether second respondent could have initiated fresh proceedings when the First respondent was seized of the matter and intimation in Form GSTDRC-01A dated 05.03.2021 was issued to which the appellants had submitted their reply dated 08.03.2021 and the said reply was neither considered nor rejected and the matter was kept pending.  The option which was available to the first respondent was to consider the representation/reply and if not satisfied, could have proceeded to issue show cause notice under Section 74(1) of the Act which option the first respondent did not exercise and the matter was left to linger.

When the first respondent’s proceeding for the same sum on the same allegation was not brought to a logical conclusion, the second respondent could not have started the preliminary proceedings. It was clear that the first proceedings commenced by the first appellant had concluded only on 23.01.2022 and on the said date, the appeal against the second proceedings commenced by the second respondent was already pending before the appellate authority on the very same amount and very same bligation.

Held :

The Hon’ble court after considering the facts and circumstances at since the appellants had responded to the initial indication, therefore the appeal should not be considered as time-barred.

The Hon’ble Court hence allowed the appeal and writ petition and directs to restore the matter to the file of the appellate authority with an instruction to hear and disapprove of the appeal on the grounds and as per the law.