Commissioner (Appeals) jurisdiction challenged after notification, but no prejudice shown and the order was upheld.

A jurisdictional objection to the Commissioner (Appeals)' authority was rejected where Notification No. 78/2002-Cus. was issued after the appeal had already reached the hearing stage, the matter was not transferred to any other competent authority, and no objection was raised when the appeal was argued on merits. The Revenue also did not dispute the correctness of the order-in-appeal on merits, and no prejudice was shown from the alleged jurisdictional defect. The order-in-appeal was therefore upheld in favour of the assessee.

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Issues: Whether the Commissioner (Appeals) had lost jurisdiction to decide the appeal after Notification No. 78/2002-Cus. dated 05-12-2002, and whether the order-in-appeal could be interfered with on that ground.

Analysis: The only challenge raised was to the jurisdiction of the Commissioner (Appeals). The notification relied upon by the Revenue was issued when the appeal was already at the stage of hearing, and the record showed that the appeal was not transferred to any other competent authority thereafter. No objection was raised before the Commissioner (Appeals) when the matter was heard on merits, and the Revenue did not contest the correctness of the order-in-appeal on merits. In these circumstances, no prejudice was shown to have been caused to the Revenue.

Conclusion: The jurisdictional objection was rejected and the order-in-appeal was upheld in favour of the assessee.

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