Doctrine of merger barred the Revenue's later appeal after the first appellate order replaced the original adjudication.

Once the first appellate authority disposed of the assessee's appeal against an order-in-original, that order merged with the appellate order. In revenue matters, the first appellate authority exercises co-extensive powers with the adjudicating authority, so a later Revenue appeal against the same adjudication could not survive independently on a part of the demand. On that basis, the subsequent Revenue appeal was held barred by the doctrine of merger and not maintainable.

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Issues: Whether the Revenue's subsequent appeal before the Commissioner (Appeals) was barred by the doctrine of merger after disposal of the assessee's first appeal on the same order-in-original.

Analysis: Once the first appellate authority had passed an order in appeal, the order-in-original stood merged with that appellate order. In revenue matters, the first appellate authority exercises co-extensive powers with the adjudicating authority, and a later appeal by the Revenue against the same adjudication on a part of the demand could not survive independently after such merger.

Conclusion: The subsequent Revenue appeal was hit by the doctrine of merger and was not maintainable.

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