Statutory right of appeal preserved when revisional interference must restore merits-based appellate reconsideration.

The right of appeal under a taxing statute is a statutory safeguard, and an error at the appellate stage does not justify depriving the assessee of a merits-based appellate determination. Where the revisional authority interferes with an appellate remand order, it must preserve the assessee's statutory appeal by ensuring fresh consideration by the first appellate authority. A revisional order that leaves the matter without such adjudication is inconsistent with the statutory scheme and cannot be sustained. The matter was therefore remanded to the first appellate authority for fresh disposal in accordance with law.

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Issues: Whether the revisional authority could set aside the remand order passed by the appellate authority but leave the assessee without a fresh adjudication by the first appellate authority, thereby depriving the assessee of the statutory right of appeal.

Analysis: The right of appeal under the taxing statute is a statutory right, and an error committed by the appellate authority does not justify depriving the assessee of that right. Where the revisional authority interferes with the appellate order, it must ensure that the appeal is restored for examination on merits rather than leaving the matter to stand without an appellate decision. A course that deprives the assessee of a merits-based appellate determination is inconsistent with the statutory scheme.

Conclusion: The revisional order, to the extent it failed to remand the matter to the first appellate authority for reconsideration on merits, could not be sustained. The matter was remanded to the first appellate authority for fresh disposal in accordance with law.

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