The high court clarified that it is improper to dismiss an appeal for non-payment of fees without giving the appellant an opportunity to rectify any deficiencies.
In a significant ruling, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has made a noteworthy decision regarding the procedural handling of GST appeals. The court’s judgment came in the case of Imaging Solutions (P) Ltd. vs. State of Haryana and Others (CWP-28643-2024), where it was determined that an appeal cannot be dismissed as not maintainable due to the failure to pay the requisite hearing fee.
The Division Bench, composed of Justices Sanjeev Prakash Sharma and Sanjay Vashisth, addressed a situation where the Appellate Authority had rejected a taxpayer’s plea on the grounds that they had not submitted a fee of Rs 10,000, a portion of the total Rs 20,000 required for the appeal. The authority had argued that without this deposit, the taxpayer’s appeal was incomplete and thus could not proceed under GST law.
Challenging this dismissal, the taxpayer contended that the appeal should not be considered incompetent solely due to the outstanding fee.
The department further argued that if the taxpayer were to pay the remaining balance, the appeal should be evaluated based on its merits rather than procedural shortcomings.
The high court clarified that it is improper to dismiss an appeal for non-payment of fees without giving the appellant an opportunity to rectify any deficiencies. The court stated, “An appeal cannot be dismissed as not maintainable due to the non-payment of the requisite fee. Before the Appellate Authority takes up any appeal, the appellant should be notified of any deficiencies and given a chance to address them.”
As a result, the high court instructed the Appellate Authority to hear the case on its merits, allowing the taxpayer to deposit the remaining fee.
This ruling emphasizes the importance of due process and fairness in the appeal system, ensuring that all taxpayers have a fair opportunity to present their cases. This decision underscores the commitment of the Punjab and Haryana High Court to uphold justice in tax matters, reinforcing that procedural hurdles should not prevent legitimate appeals from being heard.
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