Merits-based adjudication required even in appellant's absence; dismissal for default under the sales tax rules was unsustainable.

Where Rule 60(1) applied, the Tribunal was required to decide the second appeals on merits even if the appellant did not appear and the respondent was heard. The impugned dismissal rested on absence and perceived lack of interest, without examining the materials supporting enhancement of gross and taxable turnover. That approach was mechanical and failed to satisfy the statutory duty of merits-based adjudication. The dismissal was therefore not sustainable, the orders were set aside, and the matter was remitted for fresh hearing before the Tribunal.

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Issues: Whether the Tribunal could dismiss the petitioner's second appeals for default without deciding them on merits in accordance with Rule 60(1) of the Orissa Sales Tax Rules, 1947.

Analysis: Rule 60(1) permits the Tribunal, where the appellant does not appear, to decide the appeal on merits after hearing the respondent if present. The impugned order showed that the petitioner's appeals were not examined on the materials supporting the enhancement of gross turnover and taxable turnover, and the dismissal was based on absence and lack of interest rather than a reasoned consideration of the merits. The Tribunal's treatment of the petitioner's appeals was therefore mechanical and did not satisfy the statutory requirement that the matter be decided on merits even in the appellant's absence.

Conclusion: The Tribunal's dismissal of the petitioner's appeals without a merits-based adjudication was not in accordance with Rule 60(1) and could not be sustained.

Final Conclusion: The writ petition succeeded, the impugned orders were set aside, and the matter was sent back for a fresh hearing before the Tribunal.

Ratio Decidendi: When a party is absent, an appellate tribunal empowered to proceed ex parte must still decide the appeal on merits after hearing the respondent, and a dismissal founded merely on non-appearance without such consideration is invalid.

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