Rajasthan High Court Directs Condonation of Delay in GST Appeal Due to Non-Communication of Order

The Rajasthan High Court has directed the Appellate Authority to condone the delay in filing an appeal under the GST regime, where the petitioner was unable to file the appeal within the statutory period due to non-communication of the Order-in-Original. The Court held that, in such circumstances, denying adjudication on merits would cause grave prejudice to the petitioner.

Background

Royal Petro and Chemicals challenged the refusal to entertain its appeal against an Order-in-Original dated 09.12.2025, which raised a GST demand of Rs. 61,21,850 for the financial year 2018-19 on account of alleged wrongful availment and utilisation of Input Tax Credit. The petitioner contended that the order was never communicated by e-mail, SMS, or physical service, but was only uploaded on the GST portal. The petitioner claimed to have become aware of the order only when contacted by the jurisdictional officer during recovery proceedings.

Core Issue

The central issue before the Court was whether the delay in filing the statutory appeal could be condoned when the petitioner asserted that the delay was due to lack of communication of the order, and whether the Appellate Authority could be directed to consider the appeal on merits.

Submissions and Context

Counsel for the petitioner argued that the delay was bona fide and not intentional, arising solely from the absence of any independent communication of the order. It was submitted that the petitioner acted promptly upon learning of the order and that the delay should be condoned. Reliance was placed on previous Division Bench judgments of the Rajasthan High Court, where similar relief had been granted in comparable circumstances.

The State opposed the petition, contending that the appeal was now barred by limitation and that the impugned order had been properly passed.

Reasoning and Legal Analysis

The Division Bench, comprising Justice Arun Monga and Justice Ashutosh Kumar, observed that while the Appellate Authority is bound by the statutory limitation under Section 107 of the RGST/CGST Act, 2017, the facts of the case warranted judicial intervention. The Court noted that the petitioner was unable to file the appeal within the stipulated time due to circumstances beyond its control, specifically the non-communication of the order. The Court emphasised that refusing to adjudicate the appeal on merits in such a scenario would result in grave injury and prejudice to the petitioner.

The Bench referred to its consistent view in earlier decisions, where writ petitions were allowed and directions issued to entertain delayed appeals on merits when sufficient cause for delay was established.

Final Directions

The High Court allowed the writ petition to the extent of condoning the delay in filing the appeal. The Appellate Authority has been directed to entertain and adjudicate the appeal on merits, provided it is filed within 30 days from the date of uploading of the Court’s order on its website. All pending applications were disposed of accordingly.

Legal Takeaway

This decision reinforces the principle that, under the GST regime, procedural delays caused by non-communication of orders may be condoned by the High Court to ensure that parties are not deprived of their right to appeal on technical grounds. The ruling provides clarity on the approach to be adopted by appellate authorities and litigants in similar circumstances.