The Andhra Pradesh High Court dismissed a writ petition challenging a GST assessment order due to an inordinate and unexplained one-year delay. The court also upheld that notices uploaded on the GST portal constitute valid service under the law.
AR Steels, the applicant, submitted the writ petition seeking the assessment order passed from December 2021 to June 2023. The Input Tax Credit (ITC) has been disallowed under the impugned order and raised tax, interest, and penalty demands following audit and inspection proceedings conducted by the department.
The applicant stated that the assessment was passed in breach of natural justice. It stated that, as the GST registration was cancelled, they failed to access the portal and are clueless about the notice or the assessment order.
The assessment order and notices were merely uploaded on the GST portal, which they can not access as their registration had been cancelled. The applicant mentioned that the clue about demand would come to light only when the recovery proceedings were initiated.
The revenue stated that the challenge was delayed, as the writ petition was filed only in January 2026. They stated that notices were properly served through the GST portal and emphasised that the cancellation of registration does not avert a dealer from accessing orders of earlier tax periods.
Furthermore, they noted that the applicant failed to answer, despite being familiar with the inspection and audit proceedings.
The High Court, after considering the arguments of both parties, concluded that the assessment order was issued in accordance with the procedures outlined in the GST Act. The court noted that the petitioner failed to provide a valid reason for the delay in seeking judicial review. Additionally, the claim that the cancellation of GST registration hindered access to the portal was dismissed, as the assessment concerned prior periods and the portal remained accessible during that time.
In a recent ruling, the High Court, led by Justice R. Raghunandan Rao and Justice T.C.D. Sekhar reaffirmed its position regarding the handling of appeals in a batch of writ petitions. The court emphasised that ignorance of orders available on the GST portal does not constitute a valid reason for condoning delays in filing petitions. This stance is crucial as it aims to uphold the integrity of previously settled assessments that were concluded years ago, ensuring that they are not reopened without sufficient grounds.
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Therefore, the Court dismissed the writ petition, holding that the appeal of the applicant was barred by delay and that the assessment order had been passed within the due procedure. No costs were given, and pending applications were closed.
| Case Title | M/s. A.R. Steels vs The Deputy Assistant Commissioner STL |
| Case No. | NO: 1152/2026 |
| Counsel For the Petitioner | Srinivasa Rao Kudupudi |
| Andhar Pradesh High Court | Read Order |
