Admitted tax payment as a condition for appeal maintainability must be made within limitation, not after expiry.

An appeal against a sales tax assessment could be entertained only if the admitted tax was paid within the same period prescribed for filing the appeal. The statutory scheme under the U.P. Sales Tax Act, read with the relevant rules, treated timely payment of the admitted tax as a condition precedent to maintainability, and a later deposit after expiry of limitation did not cure the defect. The Indian Limitation Act was held inapplicable to condone delay in making the tax payment, because its Section 5 addresses delay in filing appeals or applications, not delay in satisfying a statutory precondition for entertainment of the appeal.

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Issues: Whether an appeal against a sales tax assessment could be entertained unless the admitted tax had been paid within the period prescribed for filing the appeal, and whether delay in depositing the admitted tax could be condoned under the Limitation Act.

Analysis: The proviso to section 9(1) of the U.P. Sales Tax Act made satisfactory proof of payment of the admitted tax a condition for entertaining the appeal. Reading section 9 with section 8 and the relevant rules, the Court held that the statutory scheme required the admitted tax to be paid within the same period allowed for preferring the appeal. The Supreme Court's construction of the word "entertain" was treated as binding, and the later deposit of the shortfall after expiry of limitation did not satisfy the statutory requirement. Section 5 of the Indian Limitation Act was held inapplicable because it governs delay in filing appeals or applications, not delay in paying the admitted tax.

Conclusion: The admitted tax had to be deposited within the prescribed limitation period, and the belated deposit did not make the appeal maintainable. The request for condonation of delay in payment was not entertainable.

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