The Calcutta High Court recently delivered an important order clarifying the applicability of the GST Amnesty Scheme in cases where sufficient recovery of disputed tax had already been made.
Background of the Case
The petitioner had filed a writ petition challenging the rejection of their GST appeal by order dated 30th July, 2024. The appeal was filed under the Amnesty Scheme, which allowed taxpayers to maintain appeals for orders passed under Section 73 or 74 of the WBGST/CGST Act, 2017 (for orders up to 31st March 2023) provided the appeal was filed by 31st January 2024 along with payment of 12.5% of the disputed tax (maximum ?25 crore), with at least 20% paid via the electronic cash ledger.
However, the appeal was dismissed on the ground of non-payment/short payment of tax, interest, and penalty as per the conditions of the Scheme.
Court’s Observations
Upon hearing both sides, the Court noted that although the rejection order cited non-compliance with the Amnesty Scheme, in fact, a sum of ?7,40,661/- had already been recovered from the petitioner on 10th May 2023 and 29th May 2023. This recovery was found to be well in excess of the 12.5% requirement under the Scheme.
The Court observed that asking the petitioner to pay again would amount to a travesty of justice. Since the trading results, purchases, and related accounts were otherwise undisputed, the payment already recovered was deemed sufficient compliance with the Amnesty Scheme.
Judgment
The High Court:
Set aside the rejection order dated 30th July 2024.
Restored the petitioner’s appeal, treating the 12.5% condition as already satisfied.
Directed the appellate authority to hear and dispose of the appeal on merits within 12 weeks from receipt of the order.
Disposed of the writ petition with these directions.
GST Case Law Sourav Ganguly Versus State of West Bengal
Citation-2025 TAXONATION 2245 (CALCUTTA)(Click here to read full case law)
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