Appeal Cannot Be Rejected for Non-Payment of Fee: Punjab & Haryana High Court
The Punjab and Haryana High Court has clarified that an appeal cannot be dismissed as not maintainable solely due to the non-payment of the requisite fee.
A Division Bench comprising Justices Sanjeev Prakash Sharma and Sanjay Vashisth adjudicated a matter wherein the Appellate Authority had dismissed an appeal on the grounds that the assessee-petitioner failed to deposit Rs. 10,000/- out of the total fee of Rs. 20,000/- mandated for filing the appeal under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) law. The Authority opined that the appeal was incomplete due to non-compliance with the statutory requirement of fee deposition.
Challenging this decision, the assessee approached the Punjab and Haryana High Court. The petitioner contended that while the appeal could be considered incomplete or incompetent due to the non-payment of the requisite fee, it could not be deemed non-maintainable. The respondent department submitted that had the assessee deposited the balance amount, the appeal would have been heard on its merits rather than being dismissed as not maintainable.
The Bench, addressing the matter, held that “on account of the non-payment of the requisite fee, an appeal cannot be dismissed as not maintainable, and in fact, before the Appellate Authority takes up an appeal, the appellant should be informed of any deficiency and be given a chance to deposit and remove the deficiency, if any.” In light of this observation, the Court directed the Appellate Authority to adjudicate the appeal on its merits while requiring the assessee to deposit the outstanding amount.
Consequently, the Division Bench allowed the petition, emphasizing procedural fairness in the adjudication process.
Cause Title: M/s. Imaging Solutions (P) Ltd. v. State of Haryana and others
Case Number: CWP 28643-2024
Date: October-22-2024
Bench: Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma, Justice Sanjay Vashisth
[Read/Download order]
