Denial of relied upon documents vitiates fair adjudication and can justify remand for fresh decision

Denial of relied upon documents can vitiate adjudication where it prevents an effective defence to the show cause notice. The appellant had sought those documents, but the adjudication order did not clearly record whether they were supplied, and the appellate order also left the issue unresolved. On that basis, the defect was treated as a breach of fair procedure and the matter was remanded for fresh adjudication after supply of the documents and grant of a personal hearing.

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Issues: Whether the denial of relied upon documents and the resulting inability to effectively defend the show cause notice vitiated the adjudication and warranted remand for fresh decision.

Analysis: The appellant had sought supply of the relied upon documents, but the request was not dealt with in the adjudication order and no clear finding was recorded on whether the documents had been furnished. The appellate order also noticed the request without resolving it. On that factual basis, the denial of effective opportunity to meet the case was found to be reasonable. In such circumstances, the defect went to the fairness of the adjudication process and justified sending the matter back for fresh adjudication after supplying the documents and granting personal hearing.

Conclusion: The adjudication was set aside to the extent necessary and the matter was remanded for de novo adjudication after supply of relied upon documents and grant of adequate opportunity of hearing.

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