GST Council Constitutes GoM For GST Appellate Tribunal; Supreme Court Had Directed The Centre That A Tribunal Must Be There

In the plea filed before the Supreme Court, the petitioner had averred that litigants were forced to approach the respective High Courts against the orders passed by the appellate or revisional authorities under the GST Act, overburdening the High Courts. The petitioner had pleaded that the absence of the GST Appellate Tribunal was causing extreme hardship to the litigants and that it was incumbent that the Centre be directed to constitute the Tribunal in the interest of justice.

The Supreme Court had noted that in view of Section 112 of the CGST Act, 2017, a GST Appellate Tribunal is required to be there in order to facilitate a person to file an appeal against the order passed by the appellate authority under Section 107 or the revisional authority under Section 108.

Also, the Court observed that the Central Government was required to constitute the GST Appellate Tribunal under Section 109 of the CGST Act.

"You have to constitute the Tribunal", a Bench led by the Chief Justice of India N.V. Ramana had remarked.

The Supreme Court had said that though the CGST Act came into force four years back but the Central Government had failed to create the Appellate Tribunal.

While expressing anguish at the non-filling of vacancies at various Tribunals, the Apex Court had criticized the Centre, asking whether it wanted to close the Tribunals. The Supreme Court had held that the litigants cannot go remediless. "It appears that bureaucracy does not want these tribunals", the Supreme Court had rebuked.