The Goods and Services Tax Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT), Bengaluru Bench, has expressed strong displeasure over the Central GST Department’s request for adjournment on the ground that its own Authorized Representative (AR) team did not have portal access to the departmental appeal.
The bench of Sudha Koka (Technical Member) and Srikanth Venkatraman (Judicial Member) has observed that the failure to map the AR Nodal Officer and assign appeals within the department was an administrative lapse that was causing avoidable delays in proceedings.
When the appeal came up for hearing, the CGST Departmental Authorized Representative sought an adjournment. The reason given before the Tribunal was that the AR team did not have portal access to its own departmental appeal.
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According to the Department, the Nodal Officer of the AR team had not yet been mapped to the portal. As a consequence, the appeal could not be assigned to an AR who could appear before the Bench and make arguments in the matter.
The Tribunal was not impressed with the explanation and recorded its strong displeasure over the reason cited for seeking adjournment.
The Bench noted that the Registry of GSTAT Bengaluru had issued notice regarding commencement of hearings from August 5, 2026, on July 10, 2026. By the date of the hearing, August 17, 2026, the CGST AR team and its leadership had therefore had sufficient time to complete the necessary administrative formalities.
The Tribunal specifically observed that the Department had ample opportunity to finalize portal access, map the AR Nodal Officer and allocate the relevant files to the Authorized Representatives.
The Bench consequently treated the failure not as an isolated procedural inconvenience but as an administrative lapse affecting the functioning of appellate proceedings.
GSTAT observed that the failure to map the Nodal Officer and allocate appeals was particularly regrettable because the lapse extended even to the Department’s own matters.
The Tribunal further noted that repeated procedural lapses of this nature were resulting in avoidable delays and continuous requests for adjournments. Importantly, the Bench stated that the problem was affecting both taxpayer appeals and departmental appeals.
The observation underscores the Tribunal’s concern that administrative preparedness by the Department is necessary for effective functioning of the newly operational appellate mechanism. The order makes clear that procedural difficulties within the Department should not repeatedly become a reason for postponing hearings.
Taking a firm view of the issue, the GSTAT directed the Commissioner, CGST, in charge of the CGST AR Team, Bengaluru, to give personal attention to resolving the problem.
The Tribunal issued specific directions requiring the Department to ensure that the AR Nodal Officer is mapped to the portal without further delay. It further directed that all pending appeals, including both departmental and taxpayer matters, be duly assigned to the respective ARs so that effective representation and arguments can take place before the Tribunal.
The Bench also ordered that a copy of its order be communicated directly to the Commissioner (AR), Bengaluru, for immediate action.
Although the Bench expressed strong displeasure over the Department’s administrative failure, it granted an adjournment in the interest of justice.
The matter has been listed for the next hearing on August 31, 2026, at 10:30 AM.
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