The Himachal Pradesh High Court has held that GSTR-9 return filed prior to issuance of amnesty notification waiving late fee cannot be a reason to deny notification benefits.
The bench of Acting Chief Justice Tarlok Singh Chauhan has observed that it would be unjust to deny the benefit to the petitioner merely because the petitioner filed the return prior to the issuance of the amnesty notification dated 31.03.2023, confined to amnesty only to those who filed the return between 01.04.2023 and 30.06.2023.
The petitioner/assessee is in the business of manufacturing and sale of medicines and registered with the Goods and Service Tax Department. The due date for submission of GSTR 9 return along with reconciliation statement in form GSTR 9C was fixed as on 07.02.2020. However, the petitioner could not submit the same in time due to instability and financial distress and submitted the same on 13.03.2023.
The CBIC issued Notification No. 07/2023, dated 31.03.2023 for waiver of late fee in excess of Rs. 20,000. The petitioner was issued show cause notice on 22.08.2022 by the department contending that the petitioner is not entitled for the benefit of the Notification No. 07/2023 dated 31.03.2023 as the same provides the benefit of waiver of late fee to the taxpayers who has filed the GSTR 9 and 9C returns during the period from 01.04.2023 to 30.06.2023 and the respondent proposed late fee of Rs. 12,71,754/-.
The petitioner submitted a reply of the notice and requested the respondent to allow the benefit to the Notification No. 07/2023, dated 31.03.2023 by taking lenient view. However, the respondent denied the benefit to the petitioner and confirmed the liability of late fee on the petitioner as he cannot go beyond the Notification No. 07/2023 dated 31.03.2023 which provides benefit to a particular set of people who has filed GSTR 9 and 9C returns from 01.04.2023 to 30.06.2023.
The department contended that the amnesty scheme under Notification No. 7/2023, dated 31.03.2023 is applicable to only those who failed to file their returns within time stipulated therein, whereas in this writ petition, the time for filing return expired on 07.02.2020 and that the petitioner filed return on 13.03.2023 and, therefore, the petitioner’s case is not covered by the notification.
The court has held that the intention of the Government is not to harass the assessee, who come forward to file their return for the assessment years mentioned in the notification within the stipulated period. Thus, it would imply that the benefit would extend to the petitioner as well, who filed the return although belatedly on 13.03.2023, which is before the cut off date mentioned in the notification.
The court quashed the order passed by department and the show cause notice issued under Section 74 of the Act are set aside and the case is remanded back to the department with a direction to pass fresh order on merit by extending the benefit of notification dated 31.03.2023 in accordance with law as expeditiously as possible preferably within three months.
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Case Details
Case Title: M/s R. T. Pharma versus Union of India & Ors.
Case No.: CWP No. 4899 of 2024
Date: 21.12.2024
Counsel For Petitioner: Goverdhan Lal Sharma
Counsel For Respondent: V. B. Verma
