Shimla, May 6 (UNI) The Himachal Pradesh High Court recently dismissed a petition filed by retired IAS officer Amit Kashyap challenging the relaxation of eligibility criteria for the post of Technical Member (State) in the Goods and Services Tax Appellate Tribunal (GSTAT).

A division bench comprising justices Tarlok Singh Chauhan and Sushil Kukreja found no illegality in the state government’s move, backed by the GST Council, to modify eligibility norms in the absence of qualified Group ‘A’ officers.

The court was hearing Kashyap’s challenge to a notification issued on October 19, 2024, and a subsequent corrigendum dated November 21, 2024.

The notifications made Class-I Gazetted Officers of the State Tax and Excise Department with 25 years of service eligible for the post, instead of restricting eligibility to officers with 25 years in Group ‘A’ service as mandated in Section 110(1)(d) of the CGST Act, 2017.

Kashyap, who has served over 25 years in Group ‘A’ and held senior positions in taxation and finance, argued that the relaxation was ultra vires the CGST Act and arbitrary, especially when eligible Group ‘A’ officers like him were available in the state.

However, the state government and GST Council, through their counsels, justified the move citing the non-availability of officers in Group ‘A’ service with the required experience within the state department.

They said that to ensure functional efficiency and representation from the state cadre, the criteria were relaxed to include those with equivalent service as Class-I Gazetted officers.

The court observed that the GST Council had considered the state's proposal and approved the relaxation through due process.

The bench noted that the petitioner had failed to establish that the decision was taken in contravention of the CGST Act or without proper authority.

Moreover, it took note of the fact that Kashyap, being a member of the All India Services, could not claim exclusive entitlement over the post intended for state department officers.

“The petition, being devoid of merit and filed on misconceived grounds, is accordingly dismissed,” the court held, putting to rest the controversy over the eligibility norms for GSTAT’s state bench in Shimla.

UNI ML PRS