Allahabad HC Rules Portal Uploading Isn’t ‘Effective Communication’ for GST Appeal Deadlines

The petitioners, largely small and medium-scale traders and manufacturers in Uttar Pradesh, were confronted with recovery proceedings after ex-parte GST adjudication orders were passed against them. These orders were uploaded only on the GST Common Portal, without any physical service or effective offline intimation.

The petitioners claimed they became aware of the demands only when coercive recovery steps such as bank account attachment were initiated, by which time the statutory 120-day outer limit for filing appeals under Section 107 of the GST Act had elapsed. They contended that mere uploading of orders on an English-only, technology-heavy portal does not amount to meaningful communication, particularly for small businesses lacking digital literacy.

Issue Before HC: Whether mere uploading of adjudication orders/notices on the GST Common Portal amounts to “communication” under Section 107 of the GST Act so as to trigger the limitation period for filing appeals.

HC’s Verdict: The Allahabad High Court ruled in favour of the taxpayers, holding that a clear distinction must be drawn between the service of an order and its effective communication. For the purpose of limitation under Section 107, the order must be communicated in a manner that gives the taxpayer actual or at least constructive knowledge of its contents. The Court held that merely uploading an order on the GST portal, without more, does not meet this threshold in a State where a significant segment of the trading community may not be technologically adept or conversant with English.

The Court emphasized that while electronic modes of service are legally permissible, they cannot be used to defeat substantive rights by trapping taxpayers in procedural technicalities. The impugned ex-parte orders were set aside, and the matters were remanded to the adjudicating authorities for fresh consideration, subject to the petitioners depositing 10% of the disputed tax amount.

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