M/S. Rk Infracorp Private Limited, vs Assistant Commissioner State Tax on 9 January, 2025

isclaimer:** The provided text is not a final judgment but a procedural order for a batch of writ petitions being heard together. The court has not ruled on the merits of the case.

Summary of High Court Order

Case: M/S. Rk Infracorp Private Limited vs Assistant Commissioner State Tax (and other connected writ petitions)
Court: High Court of Andhra Pradesh
Date of Order: January 9, 2025

1. Outcome

This is an interim procedural order, not a final judgment. The High Court has adjourned the hearing for this batch of writ petitions to April 24, 2025, due to a lack of time. All interim orders (such as stay on recovery proceedings) granted previously in these matters will continue to be in effect until the next hearing date.

2. Core Issue

The central legal question across all petitions is the validity of notifications issued under Section 168A of the CGST/SGST Acts, which extended the statutory time limit for issuing assessment and demand orders under Section 73(10) for the financial years 2017-18, 2018-19, and 2019-20.

The key question before the court is whether the government's invocation of force majeure (citing the COVID-19 pandemic) to extend these limitation periods in 2023 was legally valid and justified.

3. Key Facts

• The Government of India (via CBIC) and the State of Andhra Pradesh issued various notifications (e.g., Notification No. 9/2023, Notification No. 56/2023, and corresponding G.O.s) under Section 168A of the GST Acts.
• These notifications extended the original statutory deadline for issuing demand orders for various financial years.
• Relying on these extended deadlines, GST authorities issued show-cause notices and subsequently passed assessment orders raising tax, interest, and penalty demands against the petitioners.
• The petitioners, a group of diverse companies including M/s. RK Infracorp Private Limited, filed writ petitions challenging the legality of these extensions and the resulting assessment orders.

4. Arguments

(As inferred from the prayers listed in the writ petitions; the respondents' arguments are not detailed in this order.)

Petitioners' Arguments:
* Ultra Vires: The notifications extending the time limits are ultra vires (beyond the powers of) Section 168A of the CGST Act.
* No Force Majeure: Section 168A can only be invoked in exceptional circumstances like war, epidemic, flood, or other calamities that make it impossible for the authorities to perform their functions. The petitioners argue that the conditions of force majeure arising from the COVID-19 pandemic did not exist when the notifications were issued in 2023, making the extensions an arbitrary exercise of power.
* Violation of Article 14: The extensions are manifestly arbitrary, unreasonable, and violate the right to equality under Article 14 of the Constitution.
* Time-Barred Orders: As the extensions are illegal, the assessment orders issued based on them are barred by the original limitation period prescribed in Section 73(10) of the CGST Act and are therefore invalid and must be quashed.
* Other Challenges: Some petitions also challenge the constitutional validity of other GST provisions, such as Section 16(2)(c) (denial of ITC if supplier defaults) and Section 16(4) (time limit for claiming ITC).

5. Court’s Reasoning

The court has not provided any reasoning on the merits of the case in this order. The order is purely procedural. The only reason cited for the adjournment is "paucity of time." The court has not yet analyzed the arguments presented by the petitioners.

6. Statutory References

• Central Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 (CGST Act):
  • Section 73: Determination of tax in non-fraud cases.
  • Section 73(10): Original time limit for issuing an order under Section 73.
  • Section 74: Determination of tax in cases of fraud or willful misstatement.
  • Section 168A: Special power of the Government to extend time limits during force majeure events.
  • Section 16(2)(c) & 16(4): Conditions and time limits for availing Input Tax Credit (ITC).
• Andhra Pradesh Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 (APGST Act): Corresponding provisions.
• Constitution of India:
  • Article 14: Right to equality.
  • Article 226: Power of High Courts to issue writs.
• Notifications & Government Orders (G.O.s):
  • Notification No. 9/2023-Central Tax, dated 31.03.2023.
  • Notification No. 56/2023-Central Tax, dated 28.12.2023.
  • G.O. Ms. No. 221 (Andhra Pradesh), dated 17.05.2023.
  • G.O. Ms. No. 2 (Andhra Pradesh), dated 03.01.2024.

7. Precedents Cited

The order itself does not cite any legal precedents. However, the prayer in one of the writ petitions (W.P. No. 16871 of 2024) mentions the Supreme Court's decision in India Cements [1990(1) SCC 12], though the context is not elaborated in the provided text.