Special tribunal repeal revived High Court appellate and revisional jurisdiction under the sales tax law.

A special tribunal regime created by legal fiction did not permanently displace the High Court's appellate and revisional powers under the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959. Section 24 of the 1992 Act substituted "High Court" with "Special Tribunal" only for the operation of that special regime, without effacing the original statutory provisions. On repeal of the 1992 Act, the legal eclipse ended and the original jurisdiction revived. The repealing statute showed an intention that pending matters be transferred to the High Court, so appeals and revisions under sections 37 and 38 could again be entertained by the High Court.

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Issues: Whether, after repeal of the Tamil Nadu Taxation Special Tribunal Act, 1992, the High Court regained jurisdiction to entertain appeals and revisions under sections 37 and 38 of the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959.

Analysis: Section 24 of the Tamil Nadu Taxation Special Tribunal Act, 1992 operated by legal fiction and made the words "High Court" in the relevant provisions of the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959 read as "Special Tribunal" for the working of the special regime. The Court held that this did not amount to a real textual effacement of the original provisions. When the 1992 Act was repealed by section 3 of the Tamil Nadu Taxation Special Tribunal (Repeal) Act, 2004, the eclipse created by the 1992 Act was removed. The legislature's intention, read from the repealing statute, was that pending matters should be transferred to the High Court and that the original appellate and revisional machinery under the 1959 Act should resume operation.

Conclusion: The High Court had jurisdiction, after the repeal of the 1992 Act, to entertain appeals and revisions under sections 37 and 38 of the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959.

Final Conclusion: The review was allowed and the earlier contrary order was set aside because the High Court's appellate and revisional jurisdiction stood revived on repeal of the special tribunal regime.

Ratio Decidendi: Where a special tribunal regime replaces the High Court by legal fiction and is later repealed, the original statutory jurisdiction revives if the repealing statute manifests no contrary intention and transfers pending matters to the High Court.

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