Delhi High Court Defers Relief in Air Purifier GST Plea as Centre Questions PIL & Warns of 'Pandora's Box'

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Friday held a fresh hearing in a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking a reduction in Goods and Services Tax (GST) on air purifiers but deferred passing any interim directions, granting the Union government time to file a detailed counter-affidavit.

A Division Bench of Justices Vikas Mahajan and Vinod Kumar commenced the hearing, with Additional Solicitor General (ASG) N. Venkataraman appearing on behalf of the Centre.

“This is not a PIL at all,” Centre tells Court

At the outset, the Additional Solicitor General (ASG) strongly questioned the maintainability of the petition, contending that it did not qualify as a public interest litigation.

“This is not a PIL at all… GST is only a ruse. This will open up a Pandora’s box… There is a process... We will go through the process… filing a petition and getting a mandamus (direction) issued asking the GST Council to say this or that… We are scared from the constitutional perspective; it is the doctrine of separation of powers,” the ASG submitted.

He argued that the prayers sought by the petitioner, particularly directions to the GST Council, were impermissible and could not be granted through judicial intervention.

The ASG further claimed that the petition appeared to be “loaded” and raised suspicions about the intent behind it.

“We can’t give a committed date (on the GST Council meeting), but we certainly see an agenda (by the petitioner), we are very, very concerned,” he said.

”If it’s an air purifier, if it has to be declared as a medical device… so much complication in the licensing procedure. It is extremely regulated… How can this process be scuttled through a court process?” he said.

He also informed the Court that the matter had already been deliberated “at the highest level, including by the Finance Minister.”

Referring to an urgent meeting held by the Ministry of Finance, the ASG placed on record the Centre’s apprehensions regarding the petition.

“We (Centre’s Ministry of Finance) had an urgent meeting yesterday. We have the following concerns with this petition: it is a loaded petition, and we want to know who is behind this petition. This is not a PIL at all. Please come to prayers; it has nothing to do with GST, GST is only a ruse… Somebody wants a monopoly in air purifiers; we don’t know,” he submitted.

He also pointed out that the Health Ministry was not even a party to the case, despite the petitioner seeking a declaration that air purifiers be classified as medical devices.

GST rates fall within exclusive domain of GST Council: Centre

The ASG argued that classification of goods and fixation of GST rates fall exclusively within the constitutional mandate of the GST Council, a federal body comprising the Union and all states. Any change, he said, must follow a detailed statutory process involving licensing, regulation and consultation with all stakeholders and could not be “scuttled” through a writ petition.

Seeking time, he requested permission to file a comprehensive counter-affidavit, stating that the government could not be expected to respond substantively within two days.

Court highlights public health concerns amid pollution crisis

The Bench, however, repeatedly flagged the public health dimension of the issue, referring to the severe air pollution in Delhi and surrounding regions. Observing that air purifiers currently cost between ₹10,000 and ₹15,000, the Court questioned why GST could not be reduced to make them more affordable for the common man.

“Do whatever you have to do,” the Court remarked, noting that the concern stemmed from the grave pollution situation.

Petitioner argues air purifiers wrongly classified

Appearing in person, Advocate Kapil Madan maintained that the petition was not adversarial in nature. He submitted that a plain reading of the relevant GST notifications showed that air purifiers were being taxed under an incorrect category. 

Drawing attention to Schedule I of the notification, Madan argued that all medical devices fall under that schedule, whereas air purifiers were wrongly placed under Schedule II, attracting a higher tax rate. He clarified that he was not seeking abolition of tax but only correct classification and rationalisation.

Court notes GST Council must take call

The Bench noted the Centre’s position that air purifiers are not medical devices and clarified that the “sum and substance” of its earlier order was merely that a decision needed to be taken by the GST Council, given its pan-India character.

When asked what the difficulty was in the GST Council taking a call, the ASG responded that a defined process was already underway and that recommendations of a Parliamentary Standing Committee on the issue were under consideration. 

He stressed that the Centre was not expressing any final view at this stage.

Observing that the issue affects the public at large, the Court held that without a counter-affidavit, no interim or final relief could be granted at this stage. The Bench directed the Union government to file its detailed counter-affidavit within 10 days, with liberty granted to the petitioner to file a rejoinder thereafter.

Recording the ASG’s submission that any GST Council meeting, if convened, would have to be held physically, the Court listed the matter for further hearing on January 9 and requested that it be taken up expeditiously after the court vacation.

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