Karnataka HC Revives Mining Firm’s GST Appeal Filed 24 Days Past Limit, Citing Non-Notification Of Demand

The petitioner, a registered dealer engaged in mining, challenged a GST adjudication order for FY 2017–18 concerning alleged excess input tax credit and non-payment of tax under the reverse charge mechanism on royalty.

It contended that the DRC-01A intimation and show-cause notice were not duly served and that it had no effective opportunity to respond before the adjudication order was made.

The petitioner’s statutory appeal was dismissed as time-barred; the appellate authority also considered the merits.

The petitioner then sought relief under Articles 226 and 227 of the Constitution.

Section 107 of the KGST/CGST Act governs appeals and limits the statutory appellate authority’s power to condone delay.

The Court relied on M/s. Trupti Agro Needs v. Assistant Commissioner of Commercial Taxes and Others, W.P. No. 102348/2026, and the decisions cited therein, including Yallappa Patil, Jai Hind Enterprises and Bandigisab Maheboobsab Bijapur, as support for granting relief under Article 226 in similar circumstances.

Applying those authorities, the Court held that, in the circumstances of this case, denying an opportunity to pursue the appeal on account of the short delay would deny a substantive right.

The Court noted that the statutory appeal was delayed by 24 days beyond the stated 120-day limit, which the appellate authority could not condone under the statute.

It nevertheless considered the petitioner’s assertion that the notices had not been served and that it had been denied an effective opportunity to present supporting records, together with the comparable decisions permitting relief under Article 226.

In those circumstances, the Court condoned the delay and remitted the matter for a merits determination, making it unnecessary to resolve the merits of the tax demand itself.

The matter was remanded to respondent No. 3 for adjudication on the merits, after affording the petitioner an opportunity of hearing; the parties’ contentions were left open.