Coercive recovery barred while stay application remains pending in appeal, pending early disposal by the Appellate Authority.

Where an appeal and stay application are pending before the Appellate Authority and the stay application remains undecided, coercive recovery should not be pursued until that request is finally adjudicated. The Rajasthan HC followed its earlier view and restrained recovery steps in the meantime, while directing the Appellate Authority to hear and dispose of the stay matters expeditiously.

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Issues: Whether coercive recovery could be pursued while the appeal and stay application remained pending before the Appellate Authority.

Analysis: The petitions involved assessees who had already filed appeals along with stay applications, but the applications had not been disposed of. The Court followed its earlier view that, in such a situation, recovery action should not be pressed until the stay applications are heard and decided. The Court also directed the Appellate Authority to fix the stay matters for hearing immediately and dispose of them expeditiously.

Conclusion: Coercive recovery was held to be impermissible until final disposal of the stay applications, and the respondents were restrained from taking recovery steps in the meantime.

Final Conclusion: The writ petitions were allowed to the extent of protecting the petitioners from recovery action pending decision on their stay applications and ensuring early hearing before the Appellate Authority.

Ratio Decidendi: When an appeal accompanied by a stay application is pending and the stay application has not yet been decided, coercive recovery should not be pursued until the stay request is finally adjudicated.

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