the essay of 7 May 2025 · the untouched capture
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<p align="left"><strong><font color="#663399" size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">MAY 07, 2025</font></strong></p>
<p align="center"><font color="#FF6633" size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><strong>GST Appeal - Paper vs. Portal</strong></font></p>
<p align="center"><strong><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><u>By Vijay Kumar</u></font></strong></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><strong>THE</strong> Assistant Commissioner, CGST & Central Excise, Division-X, Nadiad, Vadodara-I passed an Order-in-Original on 30.10.2023. There is nothing original in these orders - the first adjudication orders, in the long journey of litigation in search of a little justice and fair play, are traditionally called Orders-in-Original in the CGST Department. These are usually passed by Assistant/Deputy Commissioners and Joint/Additional Commissioners. In the next stage is appeal and the appellate orders are called Orders-in-Appeal and these are usually passed by Commissioners and Joint/Additional Commissioners. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Our party, <em>Appolo Sesame Industries</em> was, as usual with Orders-in-Original, aggrieved. It is usually understood that you will never get a favourable order from the first adjudication authority; the chances are equally bleak at the first appellate stage and your hope starts at the next level, the Tribunal. The only problem? The Tribunal doesn't exist yet! </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">So, the assessee, our aggrieved party had only one option - appeal to the appellate authority, which they did. Now, there is a small trick here. We are living in the digital age and the appeal is supposed to be filed electronically and only electronically according to some officers. What if the electronic mode fails or is not accessible? No appeal? It's not really that bad. The lawmakers had visualised a situation where it would not be possible to file appeals electronically. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">So, aggrieved by the order-in-original dated 30.10.2023 passed by the CGST Assistant Commissioner, the taxpayer preferred an appeal by filing FORM GST APL-01 - but sacrilege - manually! </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Why manually? </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">The taxpayer submitted a letter stating that: </font></p>
<blockquote>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">1. The order-in-Original passed by the Assistant Commissioner, CGST & Central Excise, Division-X, Nadiad, Vadodara-I was not available on GST portal with FORM GST DRC 07 </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">2. The order was served and physically received on 02.11.2023 </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">3. As such, they were not able to file the appeal electronically and </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">4. The appeal was filed manually </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">5. They made a payment of pre-deposit of Rs.57,87,800/- being 10% of the disputed dues as per section 107(6) of the GST Act. </font></p>
</blockquote>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">The learned (they are all, all learned) Appellate Authority, (Additional Commissioner (Appeals), CGST and Central Excise, Vadodara) by his order dated 27.09.2024, rejected the appeal on the ground that the party did not file the appeal electronically as provided under Rule 108 of the Central Goods and Service Tax <strong><a href="https://taxindiaonline.com/pressrelease/details?id=3014&type=pressrelease" target="_blank">Rules, 2017</a></strong>. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Rule 108(1) of the GST Rules provides as under: </font></p>
<blockquote>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"style="background-color:#ACDFFB">108(1) An appeal to the Appellate Authority under sub-section (1) of section 107 shall be filed in FORM GST APL-01, along with the relevant documents, <font color="#FF0000">either electronically or otherwise</font> as may be notified by the Commissioner, and a provisional acknowledgment shall be issued to the appellant immediately. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"style="background-color:#ACDFFB">Provided that an appeal to the Appellate Authority may be filed manually in FORM GST APL-01, along with the relevant documents, only if - </font></p>
<blockquote>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"style="background-color:#ACDFFB">i. the commissioner has so notified, or </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"style="background-color:#ACDFFB">ii. the same cannot be filed electronically due to non-availability of the decision or order to be appealed against on the common portal, </font></p>
</blockquote>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"style="background-color:#ACDFFB">and in such case, a provisional acknowledgment shall be issued to appellant immediately. </font></p>
</blockquote>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">It appears that the Appellate Authority, without considering the provisions of Rule 108(1) of the GST Rules, rejected the appeal ignoring the fact that the taxpayer could not have preferred an appeal electronically as the order-in-original was not available on the GST portal and the Appellate Authority was empowered to accept the appeal manually as the taxpayer could not file the appeal electronically due to non-availability of the order-in-original. Except acknowledging the receipt of the letter on 17.01.2024, the Appellate Authority did not even issue the provisional acknowledgment as stipulated in clause (ii) of the proviso to Rule 108(1) of the GST Rules. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Thus, it seems that: </font></p>
<blockquote>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">1. The Appellate Authority failed to comply with the provisions of Rule 108(1) of the GST Rules and ignoring the fact that the order-in-original was not available on GST portal so as to enable the party to file the appeal electronically. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">2. The Appellate Authority ought to have considered the appeal filed by the taxpayer manually and could not have rejected the same on technical ground, that the appeal was not filed electronically. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">3. The Appellate Authority has not considered the fact that the taxpayer has followed the procedure prescribed under the GST Rules by filing an appeal manually due to non-availability of order-in-original on GST portal. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">4. The Appellate Authority has not even bothered to look into GST portal as to ascertain whether the order-in-original was uploaded and in spite of the order being available on GST portal, the taxpayers did not file the appeal electronically. </font></p>
</blockquote>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">The Appellate Authority, without verifying, mechanically and without application of mind, has observed as under after quoting Rule 108 of the GST Rules: </font></p>
<blockquote>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"style="background-color:#DFF3CB" span="span">6.2 In the case in hand, the impugned order was issued on 30.10.2023 and claimed by the appellant to have been communicated to them on 02.11.2023 itself. Considering this date of 02.11.2023, the <font color="#FF0000">appellant was required to be filed</font> electronically, within 3 months, i.e. on or before 02.02.2024 in terms of provisions of Section 107(1) ibid. A hard copy of the appeal in FORM GST APL-01 shall be submitted in triplicate to the Appellate Authority and shall be accompanied by a certified copy of the decision or order appealed against along with the supporting documents within seven days of filing of the appeal under sub-rule (1) and a final acknowledgment, indicating appeal number shall be issued thereafter in FORM GST APL-02 by the Appellate Authority or an officer authorized by him in this behalf: Provided that where the hard copy of the appeal and documents are submitted within seven days from the date of filing the FORM GST APL-01, the date of filing of the appeal shall be the date of issue of provisional acknowledgment and relevant copy of the appeal and documents are submitted after seven days, the appeal shall be the date of submission of documents. However, the appellant has filed the present appeal on 17.01.2024 in offline mode only. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"style="background-color:#DFF3CB" span="span">6.3 The offline filing of appeal can be allowed only in certain conditions as laid down in the provision contained in Rule 108(1) of CGST <strong><a href="https://admin.taxindiaonline.com/UploadedFiles/PressRelease/CGST-Act-Updated-01.01.2021.pdf" target="_blank">Act, 2017</a></strong>. Hence the present appeal made by the appellant is liable to be rejected as the appellant has not followed the procedure prescribed in CGST Act/<strong><a href="https://taxindiaonline.com/pressrelease/details?id=3014&type=pressrelease" target="_blank">Rules, 2017</a></strong>. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"style="background-color:#DFF3CB" span="span">7. Since the appeal is liable to be rejected, there is no need to examine other aspects of the matter. Therefore, no opinion is expressed on the maintainability of the appeal in accordance with the extant laws or the facts of the case. </font></p>
<p align="center"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"style="background-color:#DFF3CB" span="span">:Order: </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"style="background-color:#DFF3CB" span="span">8. In view of the above, the Appeal No. APL-01/332/23-24 filed by the appellant is rejected." </font></p>
</blockquote>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Now, what can the taxpayer do? He has already paid around 60 lakh rupees as pre-deposit and filed a proper appeal. He could not file the appeal electronically because of a defect in the portal. Who was responsible for the lapse? Undoubtedly, the Government. Who should be punished? Undoubtedly, the assessee. And that is exactly what the learned Additional Commissioner (Appeals), CGST did. Even though what the assessee did was right as per law, the appellate authority simply rejected the appeal. Did he not understand the law? Or was he making a new law or has he abundant contempt for law? </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">So, what can the taxpayer do? He is supposed to appeal to the Tribunal (GSTAT), but there is no Tribunal! Well, there is a High Court. The High Court is such a high Court that it can strike down a law passed by Parliament, and you go to such a high Court to submit that a GST Additional Commissioner does not follow a simple rule made by the government for which he works and gets paid. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">From the above observations of the findings of the Appellate Authority, the High Court was of the view that there is total non-application of mind to the facts of the case that the appeal was filed manually due to non-availability of the order-in-original on GST portal. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">The High Court [<strong><a href="https://taxindiaonline.com/caselaw/details?id=187102&type=caselaw" target="_blank">2025-TIOL-728-HC-AHM-GST</a></strong>] set aside the Order and the matter is remanded to the Appellate Authority to consider the appeal on merit within a period of 12 weeks from the date of receipt of this order of the High Court. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">The High Court did not impose any costs. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Let us hope at least now, the learned Appellate Authority will consider the appeal judicially and decide the case on merits, as he pleases. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">And so, we arrive at the great moral of our story: If the government's portal fails, it's still your fault. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">You see, the digital gods of taxation demand complete obedience-no matter how dysfunctional their systems may be. Filing manually because their own portal doesn't work? Blasphemy! Paying a ?60 lakh pre-deposit in good faith? Mere collateral damage. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">And if all else fails? Well, forget the Tribunal that doesn't exist. Just go straight to the High Court, where the judges not only just understand tax laws but also-apply them correctly. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Let's hope that after all this drama, the learned Appellate Authority finally realizes he has access to Rule 108. Perhaps someone will whisper in his ear that legal provisions aren't decorative ornaments but actual rules meant to be followed. </font></p>
<p align="justify"><font color="#FF0000" size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Until next week</font></p>
<p align="justify"><strong><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">Comments/feedback welcome at <u><a href="mailto:vijaywrite@tiol.in">vijaywrite@tiol.in</a></u> or 9848111243 (WhatsApp) </font></strong></p>
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