In a recent ruling, the Allahabad High Court dismissed several petitions that challenged the legitimacy of the extensions granted for the filing of GST returns and their subsequent scrutiny and audits for the fiscal year 2017-18. This decision comes in response to the central and state government orders that had previously extended these deadlines due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The petitions, led by M/s Graziano Transmission among others, questioned the authority of the government to extend these deadlines. However, a bench consisting of Justices SD Singh and Donadi Ramesh confirmed that the government indeed possesses the authority to modify time limitations under such circumstances.
In their verdict, the justices emphasized, “The power to issue the impugned notifications existed. It is undisputed. In view of our discussion, that power was exercised both within the confines of the legislative conditions and occasioned by circumstances confronted by the legislature.”
The court further clarified that the extensions provided were not excessive and were well within the legal boundaries. “The extent to which the power may have been exercised, i.e., the length of time extension granted, would also remain outside the scope of judicial review. Suffice to note, no excessive extension of time is seen to have been granted,” the bench noted.
