High Court restores Tax Appeals despite delay, mandates objection removal for reinstatement

The Gujarat High Court allowed the restoration of Tax Appeals upon the Commissioner's application, despite a 116-day delay in filing and the dismissal due to unresolved office objections. The Court accepted the explanation for the delay, directing the removal of objections within a specified timeframe for the appeals' reinstatement. Compliance was mandated, with the appeals to be scheduled for an admission hearing upon objection removal. The Court disposed of the applications, emphasizing adherence to its directives and record-keeping for future reference.

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Issues involved:
Application for restoration of Tax Appeal stamp numbers, condonation of delay, removal of office objections leading to dismissal of appeals.

Analysis:
The judgment by the Gujarat High Court involves the application filed by the Commissioner of Central Excise & Customs for the restoration of Tax Appeal stamp numbers and the condonation of a delay of 116 days in filing these applications. The Court had earlier ordered the removal of certain office objections within two weeks, failing which the matters would be dismissed for want of prosecution. As the office objections were not removed in time, the appeals were dismissed. The Standing Counsel for the applicant explained that a communication gap within the office led to the failure in removing the objections promptly, resulting in the dismissal of the appeals.

The Court considered the submissions made by the Standing Counsel and found merit in the explanation provided for the delay. Consequently, the Court allowed all the Miscellaneous Civil Applications, restoring the Tax Appeals to the file on the condition that the office objections would be removed by the applicant on or before a specified date. If the objections were removed within the stipulated time frame, the Court directed the office to schedule the Tax Appeals for an admission hearing on a specified date after assigning them pakka numbers.

In conclusion, the Court disposed of all the applications by allowing the restoration of the Tax Appeals subject to the removal of office objections within the prescribed timeline. The Registry was directed to place a copy of the order in each application, ensuring compliance with the Court's directives and maintaining the record of the judgment for future reference.

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