Case Law Details
Jalpaiguri Central Engineers Cooperative Society Limited Vs Union of India And Ors. (Calcutta High Court)
The appellate authority has the power to condone the delay beyond the statutory period : Calcutta High Court Held in a Service Tax Case.
In a significant decision, the Calcutta High Court has addressed the issue of condonation of delay in filing a Services Tax Appeal. The petitioner, in this case, had filed an appeal beyond the permissible time frame, i.e., 90 days (normal 60 days plus condonable 30 days) and the court’s ruling has far-reaching implications for similar cases. This article provides a detailed analysis of the case, the court’s findings, and the implications of this decision on Service Tax and Central Excise Appeals.
Detailed Analysis: The crux of the matter revolves around the petitioner-assessee who received a Show Cause Notice on 27th April 2021 for the Financial Year 2015-16 and 2016-17 for Demand of Service Tax (including Cess) in tune of Rs. 82,90,361/-. The said notices eventually led to an adjudication order by the respondent-department on 12th April 2022 where in a part demand of has been confirmed. The petitioner prefer to filed a statutory appeal before the first Appellate Authority on 14th July 2022, as per Section 85 of the Finance Act 1994. However, this appeal was rejected on the grounds that it was filed beyond the permissible time frame.
The respondent cited Section 35 of the Central Excise Act, 1944, which allows for appeals within two months from the date of communication of the decision or order. Furthermore, permits an additional one-month extension under specific circumstances. 3-day delay beyond the permissible limit. The first Appellant Authority relied on Hon’ble Supreme Court in the case of Single Enterprises us Commissioner of Central Excise, Jamshedpur and Ors. [2008 (221) E.LT. 163 (S.C) has held that “ The Commissioner of Central Excise (Appeals) as also the Tribunal being creatures of Statute are vested with jurisdiction to condone the delay beyond the permissible period provided under the Statute. The period up-to which the prayer for condonation can be accepted is statutorily provided. It was submitted that the logic of Section 5 of the Indian Limitation Act, 1963 (in short, the ‘Limitation Act’) can be availed for condonation of delay. Hence, the Appellate Authority concluded that there was no provision in the Finance Act, 1994, to condone such a delay, leading to the dismissal of the appeal.
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