Reasonable cause for appellate delay accepted where registered-post filing and follow-up enquiries made dismissal time-barred unjustified

Reasonable cause for delay in filing an appeal was established where the memorandum had been sent by registered post, no acknowledgement was received, and the assessee made enquiries with the Tribunal and postal authorities before filing again. The Tribunal's letter only stated that no appeal had been received during April 1980 and did not rule out later receipt, so the assessee's conduct in waiting for a response was held reasonable. The finding that there was no reasonable cause for the later period of delay was unsupported by the facts and perverse, so dismissal of the appeal as time-barred was not justified and the delay should have been condoned.

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Issues: Whether the Appellate Tribunal was justified in dismissing the assessee's appeal as time-barred, and whether the delay in filing the appeal was supported by reasonable cause.

Analysis: The memorandum of appeal had been sent by registered post, and when no acknowledgement was received the assessee made enquiries with the Tribunal and the postal authorities. The Tribunal's letter only stated that no appeal had been received during April 1980 and did not exclude the possibility of receipt thereafter. In these circumstances, the assessee's conduct in awaiting a response and then filing a fresh appeal was reasonable. The Tribunal's conclusion that there was no reasonable cause for the later period of delay was held to be unsupported by the established facts and therefore perverse.

Conclusion: The dismissal of the appeal as barred by limitation was not justified. The delay ought to have been condoned and the appeal entertained.

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