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Case Details: Viterra India Pvt Ltd. vs. Union of India and Others
Case No.: W.P(MD)No.19314
of 2024
Date of Order: 14th
August 2024
Court: Madurai
Bench of Madras High Court
Presiding Judge: Honourable
Mr Justice Mohammed Shaffiq
Summary of the Case: Viterra
India Pvt Ltd. filed a writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of
India to quash the orders rejecting their refund claim of ₹13,147/- and to
direct the respondents to refund the amount along with appropriate interest.
The case revolved around the applicability of GST on Ocean Freight Services,
which had already been settled by the Supreme Court in favour of the
petitioner. The court ruled that the respondents were not empowered to collect
GST on these services and ordered the refund of the amount.
Facts of the Case:
·
Viterra India Pvt Ltd., a company based in
Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu, filed a writ petition challenging the rejection of
their refund claim of ₹13,147/- for July 2019 by the GST authorities.
·
The petitioner sought to quash the orders
passed on 3rd December 2021 and 28th June 2022 by the GST authorities, which
denied the refund.
·
The petitioner argued that the issue of
GST on Ocean Freight Services had already been settled by the Supreme Court in
favour of the assessee, making the rejection of their refund claim unjust.
Submission by Petitioner:
·
The petitioner's counsel argued that the
issue of GST on Ocean Freight Services had already been resolved by the Supreme
Court, which struck down the relevant notifications as ultra vires.
·
The petitioner contended that the denial
of the refund was contrary to the law laid down by the Supreme Court, and thus,
they were entitled to the refund of ₹13,147/- along with interest.
Submission by Respondent:
· The
respondents acknowledged that the issue had been settled by the Supreme Court
but argued that the petitioner had the option to approach the Goods and Service
Tax Appellate Tribunal (which was not yet constituted) for redressal.
Findings and Judgement of
the Court:
·
The court held that since the Supreme
Court had already settled the issue of the applicability of GST on Ocean
Freight Services, the respondents were not authorized to collect GST on these
services.
·
The court ordered the respondents to
refund the amount of ₹13,147/- to the petitioner.
·
The question of interest on the refunded
amount was left open for further adjudication.
Conclusion: The
writ petition was disposed of with a direction to the respondents to refund the
amount of ₹13,147/- collected as GST on Ocean Freight Services, as the levy was
deemed unlawful by the Supreme Court. The question of interest on the refunded
amount was left to be decided in a separate proceeding.
Disclaimer: All the Information is based on the notification, circular and order issued by the Govt. authority and judgement delivered by the court or the authority information is strictly for educational purposes and on the basis of our best understanding of laws & not binding on anyone.
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