GST related cases will be resolved soon, 31 benches will open in 28 states of the country.

Tax related cases which are pending in the High Court for a long time will now be resolved soon. The government is going to open 31 GST Appellate Authorities across the country. There will be some states where there will be two or more benches.

The government has taken a big decision to settle the pending cases related to GST as soon as possible. The Finance Ministry is going to create 31 GST Appellate Authorities in 28 states and union territories of the country. Notification for this has also been issued. This decision will provide a lot of convenience to those people whose cases are pending in local courts for many months. Along with the local courts and the High Court, the Supreme Court will also get a lot of relief. The burden of such cases will be reduced.

There will be more than two benches in these states

At present, taxpayers dissatisfied with the decisions of the tax authorities have to approach the concerned High Court. It takes a long time to dispose of cases because the High Courts are already burdened with pending cases and they do not have any special bench to deal with GST cases. According to the notification, there will be two benches of GSTAT in Gujarat and Union Territories of Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu, while a total of three benches will be set up in Goa and Maharashtra. There will be two benches each in Karnataka and Rajasthan, while there will be three benches in Uttar Pradesh.

West Bengal, Sikkim and Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry will have two GSTAT benches each, while Kerala and Lakshadweep will have one bench each. There will be a bench in the seven north-eastern states of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura. GSTAT will have a bench in all other states.

What do experts say

AMRG & Associates Senior Partner Rajat Mohan said that GST Appellate Authorities are essential in resolving tax cases as they provide an impartial, expert and efficient forum for resolution of tax disputes. In the first phase, the government has notified 31 benches. Mohan said that now, the work of the second phase of identifying suitable locations for the tribunals, appointing qualified members and providing necessary infrastructure and resources will be started. This will not only benefit the tax department, but people will also benefit a lot.