GST tribunal may face 4L appeals, experts seek dispute resolution scheme
Indore: The newly operational GST Appellate Tribunal is likely to face a heavy caseload of over four lakh pending appeals from taxpayers of Madhya Pradesh, tax experts said, raising concerns over disposal timelines and the tribunal's capacity to handle the backlog.
Experts said the delay of nearly eight years in setting up the tribunal after the rollout of GST has led to a pile-up of disputed cases across the country, many of which could not be escalated beyond the first appellate stage. With the tribunal now functional, a surge of filings is expected in the coming months, putting immediate pressure on the system.
“To avoid burdening the tribunal with such a massive backlog at one go, there is a need to introduce a dispute resolution scheme for legacy cases,” said Madhya Pradesh Tax Consultant Association president Sumit Nema.
He suggested that old disputes could be settled by allowing taxpayers to pay 20–30 percent of the disputed amount, enabling faster resolution while reducing litigation.
Experts said such a scheme would not only ease the workload on the tribunal but also help unlock revenue stuck in litigation. Without intervention, the large volume of cases could lead to prolonged delays in hearings and orders.
They also pointed to tight timelines for filing appeals, which could further bunch up cases. Appeals in matters where first appellate orders were received before April 1, 2026 must be filed by June 30, while those received after that date have to be filed within three months, with a possible extension of another three months on valid grounds.
Appeal filing starts with a minimum fee of Rs.5,000, with Rs.1,000 charged per Rs.1 lakh of disputed tax, interest or penalty, capped at Rs.25,000, making GST litigation relatively costlier compared to other tribunals.
