Gujarat HC strikes down restrictive provision for export sops under GST

Order comes as big relief for exporters who were facing huge compliance issues; provision to be challenged in other courts too

In a major relief for exporters, the Gujarat high court has struck down the constitutional validity of a provision under the goods and services tax (GST) that restricts utilisation of advance authorisation licenses. These licenses entitle the holders to import goods duty free for the purpose of exports.

"This is a big relief for the exporters as the condition was creating huge problems and was difficult to comply in various cases," Abhishek Rastogi, counsel for petitioners and partner at Khaitan & Co., said.

Petitioners said they will continue to challenge the constitutional validity of the government's move in other high courts. "We