GMR Pochanpalli Expressways Limited vs. Additional Director, Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI) & Others

Background of the Case

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) awarded a highway project to GMR Pochanpalli Expressways Limited under the Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) Annuity Model. Under this arrangement, the concessionaire was required to construct, operate, and maintain the highway for a specified concession period.

Unlike traditional toll projects, the concessionaire was not permitted to collect toll directly from road users. Instead, NHAI agreed to make periodic annuity payments to the concessionaire. The highway construction was completed in March 2009, much before GST was introduced in India. However, annuity payments continued even after GST came into force on 1 July 2017.