Court Directs Consolidation of Appeals for Fairness

The Court set aside Ext.P4 order and directed the Tribunal to consider all appeals together, including those pending before the Division Bench, to ensure fairness and justice for the petitioners. The Court found it necessary in the interest of justice to allow the petitioners the opportunity to present their case before the Division Bench, emphasizing the importance of hearing and deciding appeals arising from a common order collectively.

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Issues:
Challenge to disposal of order when similar appeals pending before Division Bench, maintainability of writ petition, request for adjournment, disposal of appeals by Tribunal, necessity to hear and decide appeals together arising from a common order.

Analysis:

1. The petitioners challenged the Ext.P4 order as it was disposed of while similar appeals were pending before the Division Bench. The appeals pending before the Division Bench and the Tribunal arose from the same order. The petitioners sought directions to recall Ext.P4 order and consider it along with other pending appeals before the Division Bench.

2. The department argued that the writ petition was not maintainable as the petitioners had an appellate remedy. They contended that no adjournment request was made during the hearing, and the Single Member decided the matter on merits. The department suggested that the petitioners should avail themselves of the appellate remedy provided by law.

3. The petitioners, however, argued that the fate of the pending appeals before the Division Bench would be the same as those disposed of by the Tribunal. They believed that pursuing the appeal before the Division Bench would serve no useful purpose.

4. The Court noted the peculiar situation where both the Revenue's appeals and the petitioners' appeals should have been heard and decided together due to arising from a common order. The Court opined that the Single Member should have refrained from passing an order on merits upon being informed of the pending appeals before the Division Bench. The Court found it necessary in the interest of justice to set aside Ext.P4 to allow the petitioners an opportunity to present their case before the Division Bench.

5. Consequently, the Court set aside Ext.P4 and directed the Tribunal to consider all the appeals together and dispose of them following the prescribed procedure. The judgment aimed to ensure fairness and justice by allowing the petitioners to have their rights heard and decided in conjunction with the related appeals pending before the Division Bench.

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