Appellate jurisdiction on remand orders cannot extend to deciding reassessment merits and usurping original assessment power.

An appellate tribunal hearing an appeal from a remand order must confine itself to the validity of the remand and any directions within that limited scope; it cannot decide the reassessment dispute on merits and thereby assume original jurisdiction. Here, an ex parte reassessment under the U.P. Trade Tax Act was set aside by the first appellate authority and remanded for fresh hearing, but the Tribunal went beyond the appeal by determining the merits of the reassessment. That exercise was held to be without jurisdiction, the Tribunal's order was quashed, and the matter was restored to the assessing authority for fresh decision in accordance with law.

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Issues: Whether the Tribunal could, in an appeal arising from a remand order, set aside the reassessment and decide the matter on merits instead of confining itself to the validity of the remand.

Analysis: The reassessment had been made ex parte under section 21 of the U.P. Trade Tax Act, 1948. The first appellate authority, at the dealer's request, set aside that reassessment and remanded the matter for fresh hearing. In second appeal, the Tribunal was required to examine the propriety of the remand and, if necessary, issue appropriate directions within the scope of that appeal. It could not assume the role of the assessing authority and determine the reassessment dispute on merits, because that would travel beyond the subject-matter of the appeal and amount to an exercise of original jurisdiction.

Conclusion: The Tribunal acted beyond its jurisdiction in deciding the case on merits; its order was unsustainable and was set aside.

Final Conclusion: The revision was allowed, the Tribunal's order was quashed, and the reassessment matter was restored to the assessing authority for fresh decision in accordance with law.

Ratio Decidendi: An appellate authority cannot exceed the scope of an appeal against a remand order by deciding the underlying assessment on merits and thereby usurping the original jurisdiction of the assessing authority.

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