Clerical error correction under Sabka Vishwas Scheme allows reclassification of a wrongly filed declaration into the litigation category.

Section 128 of the Sabka Vishwas (Legacy Dispute Resolution) Scheme, 2019 can be used to correct a patent clerical or arithmetical error apparent on the face of the record. A declarant who wrongly filed SVLDRS-1 under the voluntary disclosure category, despite having an eligible pending dispute, could seek rectification where the mistake was inadvertent, caused no undue advantage, and was noticed within the prescribed time. The provision is not limited to errors committed by the designated committee alone, and may also cure a declarant's mistake that led to an erroneous order. The declaration was therefore to be treated as one filed under the litigation category.

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Issues: Whether an inadvertent clerical error committed by the declarant in filing SVLDRS-1 could be rectified under Section 128 of the Sabka Vishwas (Legacy Dispute Resolution) Scheme, 2019, and whether the declaration could be treated as one filed under the litigation category instead of voluntary disclosure.

Analysis: Section 128 permits modification of the designated committee's order to correct an arithmetical or clerical error apparent on the face of the record. An error apparent on the face of the record is a patent, manifest and self-evident mistake. The petitioner had an eligible pending dispute, filed the declaration under the wrong category, and sought correction within the prescribed period after noticing the error. The wrong categorisation did not confer any undue advantage and the mistake was inadvertent rather than deliberate. The provision is not confined to errors committed by the designated committee alone, and a declarant's mistake that results in an erroneous order may also be rectified. A restrictive reading would defeat the object of the Scheme.

Conclusion: The declarant's mistake was rectifiable under Section 128, and the declaration was required to be treated as one filed under the litigation category.

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