The Chhattisgarh High Court directed the GST Authority to Re-Open Online Portal to enable filing of Form TRAN-1 Electronically or Accept Manually.
The petitioner, M/s Nagorao Auto Engineering Works is a Trader registered under the G.S.T. Act dealing in two and three wheeler spare parts. By way of the introduction of the new GST regime w.e.f. 01.07.2017, the registered members under the GST Law in order to avail the benefit of input tax credit, were required to submit their GST TRAN-1 Form within a specific cut off date which was initially 21.09.2017 and which was subsequently extended up-till 15.11.2017 and thereafter again upto 27.12.2017. The proprietor of the petitioner-establishment however expired on 20.09.2017 and because of the said compelling circumstances, the TRAN-1 Form could not be submitted within the period provided under the statute and even under the extended period up-till 27.12.2017 which was extended by the GST Council.
The petitioner did make her attempt in ensuring that the TRAN -1 form is uploaded through online mode but because of the inexperience on the part of the legal heirs of the original proprietor as also on the part of the personnel handling the accounting of the petitioner-establishment, the same could not be uploaded because of the technical reasons. That the petitioner never tried to avoid the submission of the said details but was ever willing to do so but for the technical glitches that occurred, the same could not be uploaded. That the reasons for not uploading were beyond the control of the petitioner and the petitioner cannot be attributed for the said lapse and prayed for a chance to upload the same afresh, either by opening of the portal by the respondents or permitting them to submit the same manually.
The respondent/State however submitted that pending the petition before this Court, now that the respondents have passed the order dated 16.08.2021 declining the request of the petitioner. The petitioner would now have to file a fresh writ petition altogether challenging the order dated 16.08.2021 and the present writ petition in its present form would not be sustainable. It was also the contention of counsel for respondents/State that even otherwise the present writ petition at this juncture in its present form would not be sustainable for the reason that the petitioner has not challenged the provision of the GST Act Rule 117 of the GST Rules which prescribes a fix date by which time the TRAN-1 Form has to be submitted.
The Single bench of Justice P. Sam Koshy noted that the husband of the petitioner who was the original proprietor having expired in the midst of introduction of the new GST regime on 20.09.2017 and the then compelling circumstances, and further because of the technical glitches and difficulties which the petitioner faced in the course of submission of TRAN-1 form, this Court also endorses the view taken by the various High Courts mentioned above. Accordingly, this Court is inclined to allow the writ petition in similar terms as decided by the various High Courts.
The court directed the respondents to permit the petitioner either submit the TRAN-1 Form online by opening of the portal or permit to submit the TRAN- 1 Form manually and thereafter to process the assessees claim for grant of the input tax credit at the earliest.
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