2021 (11) TMI 913 - HC - Customs

Seeking a direction to the respondent authorities to process and refund the claim of IGST of the petitioner - HELD THAT - The Department had taken the necessary initiative to make the refund and the refund could not be effected as because the account provided by the petitioner were not acceptable by the system in the department, we provide that a representative of the petitioner would visit the office of the Customs Division, Dhubri and sort out the matter and the Customs Department may also explore any other alternative means for making the payment of the amount in consultation with the representative of the petitioner. Interest - HELD THAT - We are unaware of the amount the Department intends to pay to the petitioner as because the amount sought to be refunded is not disclosed to the petitioner. If at all, any further grievance still remains on the interest aspect, the petitioner is at liberty to approach again. Petition disposed off.

Summary

Issues:
Seeking direction for processing and refunding IGST claim along with interest for delay.

Analysis:
The writ petition was filed to direct the respondent authorities to process and refund the IGST claim of the petitioner along with applicable interest due to a delay in refunding the amount. The petitioner contended that the IGST refund for exports made from Non-EDI sites had not been refunded, citing instructions from the Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance, Government of India. The Customs Department had captured the export data of the petitioner using offline utilities, and the matter was under process as per the procedure.

During the proceedings, it was revealed that the Customs Officer had initiated the refund process but faced issues with the bank account details provided by the petitioner, resulting in the system showing a message of a duplicate bank account not being allowed. Despite the petitioner providing an alternative bank account number, the issue persisted, leading to communication with the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs in Delhi. Ultimately, the system status displayed a message of 'Rejected' on the PFMS Account Status portal.

The court acknowledged the Department's efforts to initiate the refund process and recognized the technical issue with the account details provided by the petitioner. It directed a representative of the petitioner to visit the Customs Division office to resolve the matter, suggesting exploring alternative means for payment in consultation with the petitioner's representative. Regarding the interest portion, the court noted that the exact amount intended to be paid as interest was undisclosed to the petitioner, allowing the petitioner to raise any further grievances on the interest aspect if needed.

In conclusion, the writ petition was disposed of with the direction for the petitioner's representative to address the account issue with the Customs Division and for the Customs Department to consider alternative payment methods. The petitioner was granted liberty to approach again if any further grievances arose regarding the interest aspect.