2007 (4) TMI 240 - AT - Service Tax

Appellate Tribunal overturns time-barred appeal decision, emphasizes exclusion of High Court proceedings for limitation calculation.

The Appellate Tribunal CESTAT Ahmedabad set aside the Commissioner (Appeals)'s rejection of an appeal as time-barred, remanding the matter for ... Petitioners submits that the petitioners be given sometime to approach the appropriate appellate forum, enabling them to challenge the validity of the impugned order, in which appeal was rejected on point of time bar – HC make it clear that period of limitation is to be computed by excluding the period during which the proceedings were pending before the HC- matter is remanded to the Commissioner (A) to decide the aspects of limitation by considering Section 14 read with HC directions Issues:Time bar for appeal before Commissioner (Appeals)Analysis:The judgment by the Appellate Tribunal CESTAT Ahmedabad involved a case where the appeal was rejected by the Commissioner (Appeals) on the grounds of being time-barred. The Deputy Commissioner's orders were challenged in the Hon'ble High Court of Gujarat through a writ petition. The High Court allowed the petitioners to approach the appropriate appellate forum for condonation of delay and exclusion of time spent in those proceedings. The Tribunal considered the exclusion of the time taken before the High Court for computing the limitation period. The advocate for the appellant relied on Section 14 of the Limitation Act, 1963, which allows for the exclusion of the period spent in proceedings in another court. The Tribunal concluded that the period before the High Court should be excluded for calculating the limitation period, and if done so, there would be no delay in filing the appeal before the Commissioner (Appeals).The Appellate Tribunal set aside the impugned order and remanded the matter to the Commissioner (Appeals) to reconsider the limitation aspects by considering Section 14 of the Limitation Act in conjunction with the High Court directions. The Tribunal directed the Commissioner (Appeals) to decide the case on its merits after addressing the limitation issue. Additionally, the stay petition was disposed of in the same terms. The judgment highlights the importance of correctly calculating the limitation period in appeals and the applicability of Section 14 of the Limitation Act in excluding the time spent in proceedings before another court for determining the delay in filing an appeal.