M/S Thakur Trading Co. Vs State of Hp and… — Writ and Judicial Review | Himachal Pradesh HC (2026)

M/S Thakur Trading Co. Vs State of Hp and… — Writ and Judicial Review | Himachal Pradesh HC (2026)

What the court decided

AI extract

Outcome

Impugned order dated 31.12.2023 (Annexure P-4) passed by the Appellate Authority under Section 107 of HPGST Act quashed and set aside; matter remanded to the Appellate Authority to decide the petitioner's appeal on its own merits in accordance with law after hearing the parties including the petitioner, ignoring the delay in filing the appeal; petitioner directed to appear before the Appellate Authority on 11.08.2026; no separate notice to be issued to present parties.

Issue for consideration

Whether the petitioner's appeal, dismissed by the Appellate Authority under Section 107 of the Himachal Pradesh Goods and Services Act as barred by limitation, ought to be adjudicated on merit, in view of the submission that the Appellate Authority had no power to condone the delay and no efficacious alternative remedy was available to the petitioner.

Court's answer

Taking into consideration the aforesaid facts and circumstances, it would be appropriate for the Appellate Authority to decide the appeal on merit.

Ratio / Principle

The impugned order dated 31.12.2023 (Annexure P-4), passed by the Appellate Authority under Section 107 of HPGST Act, is quashed and set aside, and the matter is remanded back to the Appellate Authority with direction to decide the appeal on its own merits.

Key takeaways

The appeal is to be decided in accordance with law, after hearing the parties including the petitioner.ratio¶22
Petitioner is directed to appear before the Appellate Authority on 11.08.2026; thereafter the Appellate Authority shall proceed further, ignoring the delay in filing the appeal, and decide the appeal as expeditiously as possible.ratio¶23
No separate notice shall be issued to the present parties before the Appellate Authority; on failure of parties to attend the proceedings, the Appellate Authority shall proceed and pass appropriate orders in accordance with law.

Detailed headnote1 paragraphs

High Court of Himachal Pradesh at Shimla — CWP No.10057 of 2026, decided 20.07.2026 (bench: Vivek Singh Thakur and Ranjan Sharma, Judges; judgment delivered orally by Vivek Singh Thakur, Judge). M/s Thakur Trading Co. v. State of Himachal Pradesh and others. Writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution challenging (i) show cause notice dated 30.12.2023 (Annexure P-3), (ii) Appellate Authority order dated 31.12.2023 (Annexure P-4), and (iii) order dated 26.02.2026 (Annexure P-6) passed under Section 107 of the Himachal Pradesh Goods and Services Act, whereby the petitioner's appeal was dismissed as barred by limitation. Reply not filed; with parties' consent the petition was taken up for final adjudication. Learned counsel submitted that the Appellate Authority had no power to condone the delay and no efficacious order or alternative remedy was available. Held: it would be appropriate for the Appellate Authority to decide the appeal on merit; accordingly the impugned order dated 31.12.2023 (Annexure P-4) is quashed and set aside and the matter remanded to the Appellate Authority to decide the appeal on its own merits in accordance with law after hearing the parties including the petitioner; petitioner directed to appear before the Appellate Authority on 11.08.2026, the delay in filing the appeal to be ignored and the appeal decided as expeditiously as possible; no separate notice to be issued to the present parties, and on their failure to attend, the Appellate Authority to proceed and pass appropriate orders in accordance with law. Petition and pending applications disposed of. No precedent cited; no dissenting opinion.

2026:HHC:29739

IN THE HIGH COURT OF HIMACHAL PRADESH AT SHIMLA CWP No.10057 of 2026 Date of decision: 20.07.2026

__________________________________________________________ M/s Thakur Trading Co. ....Petitioner Versus State of Himachal Pradesh and others ....Respondents

Coram

Hon’ble Mr. Justice Vivek Singh Thakur, Judge Hon’ble Mr. Justice Ranjan Sharma, Judge

1 Whether approved for reporting?

For the petitioner: Mr. Rakesh Sharma and Ms. Sakshi Gautam, Advocates. For the respondents: Mr. Anup Rattan, Advocate General with Mr. Sushant Keprate, Additional Advocate General and Ms. Swati Draik, Deputy Advocate General.

Vivek Singh Thakur, Judge (Oral)

Reply has not been filed.

2. With consent of parties, to avoid any further

delay in adjudication of the matter, petition is taken for final adjudication.

3. Petitioner has approached this Court, invoking jurisdiction of this Court, under Article 226 of the Constitution, challenging the show cause notice dated 30.12.2023 [Annexure P-3] as well as order passed by Appellate Authority dated 31.12.2023 [Annexure P-4] and order dated 26.02.2026 [Annexure P-6] passed by

1 Whether reporters of Local Papers may be allowed to see the judgment?

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Appellate Authority under Section 107 of the Himachal Pradesh Goods and Services Act, whereby, appeal preferred by the petitioner has been dismissed, being barred by limitation.

4. Petitioner had filed appeal on 15.12.2025, whereas, the basic impugned order was passed on 26.02.2026/09/03/2026.

5. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the Appellate Authority had no power to condone the delay and, therefore, no efficacious order or alternative remedy was and is available to the petitioner, whereas, claim of parties, in the interest of justice, is required to be adjudicated on merit.

6. Taking into consideration the aforesaid facts and circumstances, it would be appropriate for the Appellate Authority to decide the appeal on merit and, accordingly, impugned order dated 31.12.2023 (Annexure P-4), passed by the Appellate Authority under Section 107 of HPGST Act is quashed and set-aside and matter is remanded back to Appellate Authority with direction to decide the appeal on its own merits, in

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accordance with law, after hearing the parties including the petitioner.

7. Petitioner is directed to appear before the Appellate Authority on 11.08.2026 and, thereafter, Appellate Authority shall proceed further, ignoring the delay in filing the appeal and decide the same as expeditiously as possible.

8. However, it is made clear that no separate notice shall be issued to present parties before the Appellate Authority and failure of parties to attend the proceedings before Appellate Authority, the Appellate Authority shall proceed and pass appropriate orders, in accordance with law.

9. Accordingly, the petition is disposed of, in the above terms, so also the pending application(s), if any.

(Vivek Singh Thakur) Judge

(Ranjan Sharma) Judge

July 20, 2026 [Bhardwaj]