Case Details: Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (Villupuram) Ltd. Versus Additional Commissioner of Central Tax, Chennai, (2025) 31 Centax 305 (Mad.)
Judiciary and Counsel Details
- Krishnan Ramasamy, J.
- Shri P. Raj Kumar for the Petitioner.
- Shri S. Gurumoorthy, Sr. Panel Counsel for the Respondent.
Facts of the Case
The petitioner is engaged in the business of providing public transportation services and is registered under the GST regime. Owing to persistent technical glitches on the GST portal, including issues with the digital signature of the Managing Director, the petitioner was unable to file GSTR-3B returns for a prolonged period. Despite the non-filing, the petitioner deposited the exact amount of output tax liability into the Electronic Cash Ledger within the prescribed due dates. The department, however, proceeded to levy interest under Section 50 read with Section 73(1) of the CGST and TNGST Acts on the ground that the actual debit of the tax from the Electronic Cash Ledger occurred only upon filing the returns at a later date.
High Court Held
The Hon’ble Madras High Court held that where the tax amount is credited to the Electronic Cash Ledger before the due date, no interest liability arises merely because the debit towards payment of tax was effected subsequently while filing returns. The Court relied upon Rule 88B(1) of the CGST Rules, 2017 and observed that interest liability ceases from the date of credit in the Electronic Cash Ledger. It was further held that the relevant rule is clarificatory and therefore applicable irrespective of retrospective or prospective operation. Accordingly, the impugned order was quashed to the extent of interest demand, and the writ petition was disposed of in favour of the petitioner.
List of Cases Cited
- Eicher Motors Ltd. v. Superintendent of GST and Central Excise Range-II — 2024 (81) G.S.T.L. 418/(2024) 14 Centax 323 (Mad.) — Referred [Para 4]
