Commission addresses 16-year delay in appeal resolution, orders reconstruction and hearing.

The Commission acknowledged the delays in resolving appeals filed in the office of the Commissioner of Central Excise, Kolkata for over 16 years due to the unavailability of necessary documents following office relocations. Despite expressing astonishment at the lack of attention given to the appeals, the Commission directed the matter to be remitted back to the Commissioner (Appeals), Central Excise, Ranchi, with instructions to reconstruct the records and conduct a hearing with the appellant. A 90-day timeframe was provided for this reconstruction process, emphasizing the need for cooperation from the appellant for the resolution of the appeals.

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Issues:
1. Delay in resolving appeals filed in the office of the Commissioner of Central Excise.
2. Absence of relevant records hindering the resolution of appeals.
3. Reconstruction of files and cooperation required from the appellant for the same.

Analysis:
The case involved a situation where the appellant's appeals filed in 1992 in the office of the Commissioner of Central Excise, Kolkata had not been resolved for over 16 years. The Central Public Information Officer (CPIO) highlighted that due to the shifting of the Commissioner (Appeal), Central Excise from Kolkata to Patna and then to Ranchi, the necessary documents related to the appeals were not available, making it impossible to make a decision on the files.

The Commission acknowledged the appellant's frustration and surprise at the lack of resolution of the appeals despite being properly filed. Emphasizing that an appeal under the Central Excise Act is a quasi-judicial action, the Commission expressed astonishment at the lack of attention given to these appeals over the years. However, it was deemed unproductive to dwell on past delays.

In light of the circumstances, the Commission directed the matter to be remitted back to the Commissioner (Appeals), Central Excise, Ranchi, with instructions to conduct a hearing with the appellant. The Commissioner was tasked with initiating the process of reconstructing the records necessary for resolving the appeals and responding to the appellant's RTI queries. A timeframe of 90 days was provided for completing this reconstruction process, considering its potential time-consuming nature.

The decision concluded by disposing of the appeal with the outlined directions and mandated that a copy of the decision be shared with the involved parties. The resolution of the issues hinged on the cooperation of the appellant in providing essential documents for the reconstruction of the appeal records, facilitating the eventual resolution of the long-pending appeals.

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