Scope of appeal limits fresh interest demand; appellate authority could not add an unchallenged issue in a refund matter.

An appellate authority cannot impose a fresh interest demand in an appeal confined to refund when the interest issue had already been separately decided by the adjudicating authority and was not challenged. The appellate forum must remain within the subject matter of the appeal and cannot travel to an extraneous issue not placed before it for decision. The interest demand was therefore unsustainable and was set aside, while the refund-related portion of the order remained undisturbed.

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Issues: Whether interest could be demanded by the appellate authority in an appeal confined to refund, when the question of interest was not in dispute before the authority below and had been separately decided.

Analysis: The dispute before the appellate authority concerned only the refund claim. The liability to interest had already been dealt with separately by the adjudicating authority, and no appeal had been filed against that decision. In these circumstances, the appellate authority could not travel beyond the subject matter of the appeal and introduce a fresh demand of interest on an issue that was extraneous to the proceedings before it.

Conclusion: The demand of interest raised by the appellate authority was unsustainable and was set aside; the refund rejection remained unchallenged.

Final Conclusion: Relief was granted only to the extent of deletion of the interest demand, while the refund-related part of the order remained undisturbed.

Ratio Decidendi: An appellate authority cannot adjudicate or impose a demand on an issue that is outside the scope of the appeal and has not been brought before it for decision.

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