No Further Pre-Deposit Under Section 112(8)(b) Where Amount Already Paid at First Appellate Stage Exceeds Percentage of Reduced Demand — GSTAT Cuttack Bench Follows Jharkhand HC’s Ashirwad Food Industries, Rejects Revenue’s Recall Application

The GSTAT Cuttack Bench has rejected the Revenue’s application seeking recall of its admission order, reaffirming that where the pre-deposit made under Section 107(6) at the first appellate stage already exceeds the total amount required under Section 112(8)(b) for the second appeal — because the appellate authority substantially reduced the demand — the assessee is not required to make any further deposit for pursuing the appeal before the Tribunal. The ruling by Member (Judicial) Suchismita Misra and Member (Technical) Ranjan Kumar Sahoo in INTL. APPL/2/CTT/2026 in APL/10/2026 (Manoranjan Dash v. Commissioner CT GST, decided 21.09.2026) follows the Jharkhand HC’s decision in M/s Ashirwad Food Industries v. Union of India.

The assessee had deposited Rs. 1,13,448 as pre-deposit against the original disputed tax of Rs. 11,34,474. The appellate authority reduced the demand to Rs. 1,02,012. The Revenue argued that Section 112(8)(b) requires a fresh 10% deposit ‘in addition to’ the amount paid under Section 107(6), and that the Tribunal’s interpretation would set an undesirable precedent. The Tribunal held that the pre-deposit is not a separate or independent liability but represents a specified portion of the disputed tax, and cannot be applied mechanically ignoring the fact that the assessee has already deposited an amount exceeding the aggregate percentage of the tax remaining in dispute.

- 2026-juristway.com-2608-GSTAT(Cuttack)-GST  |  GSTAT Cuttack Bench  |  INTL. APPL/2/CTT/2026 in APL/10/2026  |  21.09.2026