Allahabad High Court Refuses to Entertain Delayed GST Writ Petition Filed After Expiry of Statutory Appeal Period

Court : High Court of Judicature at Allahabad

Brief :

The Allahabad High Court has ruled that a taxpayer cannot invoke the extraordinary writ jurisdiction of the High Court merely to avoid the statutory limitation prescribed for filing an appeal under the Goods and Services Tax (GST) law. The Court dismissed a writ petition filed by M/s Mishra Security Services, holding that once the statutory time limit for filing an appeal has expired, a writ petition cannot ordinarily be used as an alternative remedy.

The petitioner challenged a Show Cause Notice dated 17 March 2025 and the assessment order dated 4 June 2025, contending that both were issued without jurisdiction. However, the Court observed that the GST authorities had already granted the petitioner an opportunity of personal hearing before passing the assessment order. Therefore, there was no violation of the principles of natural justice that could justify interference under Article 226 of the Constitution.

The Bench further noted that the petitioner approached the High Court only after the limitation period prescribed under Section 107 of the Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 had already expired. Under the statute, an appeal must be filed within three months from the communication of the order, with an additional one-month condonable period available on showing sufficient cause.

The Court found that the petitioner failed to provide any satisfactory explanation either for not filing the statutory appeal within time or for approaching the High Court after such a prolonged delay. According to the Bench, permitting such petitions would undermine the statutory appellate mechanism created under the GST law.

Citation :

M/s Mishra Security Services v. State of Uttar Pradesh & Others
Writ Tax No. 715 of 2026
Bench: Justice Shekhar B. Saraf and Justice Abdhesh Kumar Chaudhary

Judgement :

The Division Bench held that the writ petition was nothing more than an attempt to circumvent the statutory appeal process after the prescribed limitation period had expired. The Court observed that the petitioner had been negligent in pursuing the available legal remedy and failed to demonstrate any exceptional circumstances warranting the exercise of writ jurisdiction.

The Court emphasized that Article 226 cannot be invoked to render the statutory limitation provisions ineffective or to bypass the appellate framework established by the GST Act. Since there was no procedural illegality, jurisdictional defect, or violation of natural justice, no interference was called for.

Accordingly, the Allahabad High Court dismissed the writ petition, reiterating that taxpayers must diligently pursue the statutory remedies available under the GST law within the prescribed limitation period.   

Particulars	Details
Case Name	M/s Mishra Security Services v. State of Uttar Pradesh & Others
Case Number	Writ Tax No. 715 of 2026
Court	High Court of Judicature at Allahabad
Bench	Justice Shekhar B. Saraf & Justice Abdhesh Kumar Chaudhary
Petitioner	M/s Mishra Security Services
Counsel for Petitioner	Apoorv Dev, Prashant Kumar Singh
Counsel for Respondent	C.S.C.
Key Provision	Section 107, CGST Act, 2017
Decision	Writ Petition Dismissed