Facts of the Case-The petitioner, Mr. Amit Kumar Basau, partner of M/s Basau Construction (India) — an unregistered firm — filed a writ petition challenging the order dated 20th February 2025 and Show Cause Notice dated 27th November 2024 for FY 2020–21, raising a total tax demand of ?1,09,02,348. The petition also challenged Notification Nos. 40/2021–Central Tax and 40/2021–State Tax, whose validity is pending in Sarens Heavy Lift India Pvt. Ltd. v. STO. Though the respondents objected on maintainability under Section 69 of the Partnership Act, the Court, relying on Haldiram Bhujiawala and Shiv Developers, held that an unregistered firm can enforce statutory rights under the CGST Act.
Grounds of Writ-The Petitioner filed a writ petition challenging a tax demand order issued by the first respondent.The respondents objected to the maintainability of the writ, arguing that the petitioner was representing an unregistered partnership firm, and cited Section 69(2) of the Indian Partnership Act, 1932, which prohibits such firms from pursuing court proceedings to enforce contractual rights. In response, the petitioner claritied that the writ was not aimed at enforcing any contractual rights but rather sought to uphold statutory rights conferred under the Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) Act.
Order- The court ruled in favour of the petitioner, holding that an unregistered partnership firm is not barred from filing a writ petition for the enforcement of statutory or common law rights. It further directed that the petitioner may file an appeal on or before 30th November 2025. accompanied by the required pre-deposit. The Court emphasized that the appeal shall not be dismissed on the ground of limitation, and must be adjudicated on its merits, subject to the final outcome of the Sarens Heavy Lift India Pvt. Ltd. matter.
GST Case Law Amit Kumar Basau Versus Sales Tax Officer
Citation-2025 TAXONATION 2619 (DELHI)(Click here to read full case law)
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