Vested forum right continues after amendment; pre-amendment trade tax appeal had to be heard by a Division Bench.

The right to have an appeal heard by a particular forum is a vested right that attaches when proceedings are initiated, and a later amendment changing the forum is not merely procedural. Unless the legislature clearly provides otherwise, that vested forum right continues after amendment. Because the appeal was filed before the 1997 amendment to the Uttar Pradesh Trade Tax Act, the amended single-member procedure could not be applied, and the appeal had to be heard by a Division Bench; the single-member order was therefore unsustainable.

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Issues: Whether an appeal filed before the 1997 amendment to the Uttar Pradesh Trade Tax Act was required to be heard by a Division Bench, or whether it could be heard by a single member under the amended provision.

Analysis: The right to have proceedings heard by a particular forum is a vested right when the proceedings are initiated, and a change in forum is not treated as a mere matter of procedure. Unless the legislature clearly provides otherwise, such vested right continues despite an amendment altering the jurisdiction or composition of the forum. As the appeal had been filed prior to the amendment, the amended single-member procedure could not be applied to deprive the applicant of the earlier forum.

Conclusion: The appeal was required to be heard by a Division Bench, and the order passed by a single member was not sustainable.

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