Jharkhand High Court Directs Taxpayers to Use Ranchi GSTAT as It Becomes Functional

The Jharkhand High Court has clarified that taxpayers must approach the Goods and Services Tax Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT), as now it has become operational.

The petitioner, M/s Shiv Shakti Enterprises, had filed a writ petition before the Jharkhand High Court, submitting that the GSTAT was not functional.

However, during the hearing, the GST Department informed the court that the GSTAT Ranchi Bench is functioning from a temporary address, as per a public notice dated 30.03.2026.

Considering this notice, the High Court declined to hear the writ petition and instead granted liberty to the petitioner to file an appeal before the tribunal.

The court said that if the appeal is filed within two weeks, it should be considered on its merits without rejecting it on the ground of delay because the tribunal was non-functional for a long period, and there were issues about even accepting the filings.