GSTAT Operationalised: Four Critical Question Litigants Must Navigate

We are pleased to share that our Partner, Supreme Kothari, and Principal Associate, Mallows Priscilla P., have co-authored an article titled ‘𝗚𝗦𝗧𝗔𝗧 𝗢𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗲𝗱: 𝗙𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗖𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗤𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗟𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗴𝗮𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗠𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗡𝗮𝘃𝗶𝗴𝗮𝘁𝗲’, published on Taxsutra.

After nearly nine years of legislative changes, constitutional challenges and institutional delay, GSTAT has finally become operational. Its commencement, however, has surfaced a set of unresolved questions where statutory text, delegated legislation and practical implementation do not always move in harmony.

The article examines four critical issues arising from GSTAT’s operationalisation: the unresolved limitation framework governing departmental appeals under Section 112(3) of the CGST Act and the doctrine of impossibility as a potential safeguard; the conflict between provisional and final acknowledgements under Rule 110(4) of the CGST Rules and its implications for maintainability; the computation of the mandatory pre-deposit where the first appellate authority has reduced the original demand; and the evolving and contested position on penalty-only appeals before GSTAT.

The authors conclude with a practitioner’s note of caution: until these issues are authoritatively settled by GSTAT or higher courts, litigants should adopt a cautious approach and avoid positions that could jeopardise the maintainability of their appeals.

Read the article here