Mandatory Exhaustion of Statutory Remedies: High Court Directs Assessee to GST Tribunal in Mismatch Dispute

The judicial landscape of indirect taxation consistently emphasizes the importance of following the established appellate hierarchy. In the recent judicial pronouncement of Ajay Kumar Vs Union of India, the Patna High Court firmly reiterated that writ jurisdictions cannot be invoked as a substitute for statutory appeals. The Court declined to entertain a writ petition challenging a first appellate order, directing the assessee to utilize the alternative remedy available under Section 112 of the Bihar Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017.

Factual Matrix of the Dispute

The controversy pertained to the financial year 2019-20, where the assessee found themselves subjected to rigorous scrutiny by the state tax administration. The jurisdictional Assistant Commissioner of State Tax passed an ex parte assessment order on 08.01.2021, which was immediately followed by a consequential demand order on 09.01.2021. Both directives were issued invoking the stringent provisions of Section 74 of the CGST Act, 2017 and the corresponding BGST Act.