HC Restores GST Amnesty Appeal Dismissed for Non-Appearance, Grants Fresh Hearing:

The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court has set aside an appellate order dismissing a GST appeal relating to the Amnesty Scheme under Section 128A of the Tamil Nadu Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, and granted the taxpayer one final opportunity to pursue the appeal on merits.

The petitioner, Tvl. Arul Raj Agencies challenged the order dated 28 April 2026 by which its appeal against the rejection of its claim under the GST Amnesty Scheme was dismissed. The petitioner contended that although an authorised representative had been appointed, the representative's name was not reflected in the cause list published on the department's erstwhile website.

It further argued that no separate hearing notice was served on the authorised representative, resulting in non-appearance on the scheduled date. Consequently, the appellate authority dismissed the appeal on the assumption that the petitioner had no objections or supporting merits.

The State opposed the writ petition, submitting that the hearing notice had been validly uploaded on the GST portal well in advance. It further argued that the portal automatically generates SMS alerts and email notifications to both the taxpayer and the authorised representative, making the service of notice legally valid despite the omission of the representative's name in the published cause list.

The High Court observed that uploading notices on the GST portal constitutes a valid service under the statutory rules and acknowledged the respondents' submission regarding automated SMS and email alerts. However, the Court held that the appeal had been rejected solely because of the petitioner's non-appearance and noted that the petitioner had expressed willingness to diligently prosecute the appeal if another opportunity was granted.

Taking an equitable view, the Court set aside the appellate order dated 28 April 2026 and remanded the matter to the appellate authority for fresh consideration. It directed the petitioner or its authorised representative to appear before the appellate authority on 15 July 2026, or on any other date notified by the authority, and clarified that no further opportunity would be granted on the ground of non-appearance.

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