Timely statutory revision must be decided on merits; belatedness objection cannot defeat a properly raised penalty challenge.

Where a statutory revision against a penalty order is filed within time and is entertained, the revisional authority must decide the challenge on merits and cannot decline consideration merely on a belatedness objection. The High Court held that, absent a specific finding that a combined revision was not maintainable, the authority was legally bound to adjudicate the penalty issue one way or the other. The refusal to examine the penalty revision was therefore unsustainable, the order was set aside, and the matter was remanded for fresh decision on merits.

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Issues: Whether the revisionary authority could decline to decide on merits the petitioner's revision against the penalty order on the ground that the request was belated, despite the revision having been filed in time and specifically challenging the penalty order.

Analysis: The petitioner had filed a revision within time against both the assessment and penalty orders. The assessment-related revision had already been dealt with, but the penalty-related revision was not decided on merits. Since the authority had entertained the revision and there was no finding that a combined revision was incompetent, it was under a legal obligation to decide the challenge to the penalty order one way or the other on merits. A litigant's right to pursue the statutory challenge could not be defeated by declining to examine the penalty issue when it had already been raised in time.

Conclusion: The refusal to decide the revision relating to the penalty order was unsustainable. The order was set aside and the matter was remanded to the revisionary authority for decision on merits.

Final Conclusion: The writ petition succeeded, and the dispute concerning the penalty order was sent back for fresh consideration in revision.

Ratio Decidendi: Where a statutory revision challenging an adverse order has been filed in time and is entertained, the revisional authority must adjudicate it on merits and cannot refuse consideration on a belatedness objection absent a specific finding that the challenge itself is not maintainable.

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