Rectification of Tribunal order denied where no apparent legal or factual mistake was shown and export-obligation breach proceedings lacked sanction.

Rectification was unavailable because no apparent mistake of fact or law was shown in the Tribunal's final order. The order had proceeded on the basis that a duty demand for alleged breach of export obligations could not be sustained without proper sanction or authorisation from the Development Commissioner under the applicable circular. A communication from the Assistant Development Commissioner was insufficient to constitute the required permission to initiate recovery proceedings. A later order from the Development Commissioner also recorded that the breach proceedings had been dropped, with no shortfall in NFEP and no breach of the relevant norms. The rectification application therefore failed on merits.

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Issues: Whether the record disclosed any mistake of fact or law in the Tribunal's final order warranting rectification, in the light of the alleged permission from the Development Commissioner and the relevant circular governing duty demand for breach of export obligations.

Analysis: The impugned order had been passed on the basis that duty demand for alleged breach of export obligations could not be sustained without proper sanction or authorisation from the Development Commissioner under the applicable circular. The correspondence relied upon by the Revenue was only a communication from the Assistant Development Commissioner and did not amount to the requisite permission from the Development Commissioner to initiate recovery proceedings. A later order of the Development Commissioner also indicated that the proceedings on breach of export obligations had been dropped, with a finding that there was no shortfall in NFEP and no breach of the relevant norms. In these circumstances, no apparent mistake in the Tribunal's reasoning or conclusion was shown.

Conclusion: No rectifiable mistake of fact or law was established, and the rectification application was not maintainable on merits.

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