Gauhati High Court Allows For Restoration of Cancelled GST Number:

Gauhati High Court Allows For Restoration of Cancelled GST Number The Gauhati High Court has held that cancellation of GST registration due to continuous non-filing of returns does not permanently deprive a taxpayer from carrying on business and directed the authorities to restore the registration if the taxpayer fulfils the statutory compliance. The petitioner, Sri Pankaj Kr Agarwal, is the proprietor of Geeta Construction Products and had challenged the order dated 17 March 2023 passed by the Superintendent, CGST, Tinsukia-1 Range, whereby his GST registration bearing No. 18ALFPA6362B1ZJ was cancelled on account of non-filing of GST returns for a period of six months. According to the petitioner, there were some financial difficulties that prevented him from filing the statutory returns. He pleaded that all pending returns had been furnished and defaults had been corrected up to March 2023. The petitioner also expressed willingness to comply with the requirements contained in the proviso to Rule 22(4) of the Central Goods and Services Tax Rules, 2017. The Court referred to Section 29(2)(c) of the CGST Act, 2017, in which it has been provided that the proper officer can cancel registration in cases where returns are not furnished for a continuous period of six months. The Court also referred to Rule 22 of the CGST Rules, 2017, and the proviso to sub-rule (4), which enunciates that where a registered person furnishes all pending returns and makes payment of tax dues together with applicable interest and late fee, the proper officer may drop the cancellation proceedings and pass an order in Form GST REG-20. After observing the legal position, the Court directed the petitioner to approach the concerned authority within sixty days seeking restoration of the GST registration. The Court further directed that if the petitioner submits the application and fulfils all conditions prescribed under the proviso to Rule 22(4) of the CGST Rules, 2017, the competent authority shall consider the request for restoration in accordance with law and take necessary steps expeditiously. Accordingly, the writ petition was disposed of.