Appeal dismissed for late filing; Despatch Register prevails over appellant's claim; credible reasons required

The Tribunal dismissed the appeal due to the appellant's failure to provide credible reasons to condone the delay in filing the appeal, which was over 2 years. The appellant's claim of receiving the order in 2003 was contradicted by evidence showing the order was dispatched in 2001. The Tribunal emphasized the evidentiary value of the Despatch Register over the appellant's affidavit, leading to the rejection of the condonation of delay application and ultimately the dismissal of the appeal.

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Issues: Delay in filing the appeal, condonation of delay

In this case, the main issue revolves around the application for condoning the delay in filing the appeal. The appellant claimed to have received the impugned order on 24-4-2003 and filed the appeal on 1-9-2003 due to illness recovery on 22nd August. The delay was one month and eight days. The Departmental Representative verified the dispatch of the order by producing the Despatch Register and relevant Postal receipt showing it was sent by registered post on 6-8-2001. The Commissioner (Appeals) noted that the date in the Appeal Memo was manipulated by overwriting, leading to the dismissal of the appeal for being filed beyond the prescribed period of 3 months.

Upon examination of the documents, the Tribunal found that the appellant's claim of receiving the order only on 24-4-2003 was not credible. The Despatch Register and postal receipt confirmed the order was dispatched in 2001 itself. The Tribunal emphasized the evidentiary value of the Despatch Register over the appellant's affidavit. It was concluded that the appellant failed to provide sufficient reasons to condone the delay of over 2 years. Consequently, the application for condonation of delay was dismissed, leading to the dismissal of the appeal itself.

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