Refund claim must be reconsidered after defect rectification, hearing, and a fresh reasoned decision.

Rejection of a refund claim should be reconsidered where the applicant was not afforded a hearing and the notified deficiencies in the application remained outstanding. The matter may be disposed of by requiring the applicant to first rectify the identified defects, after which a hearing should be granted and the refund request decided afresh by a reasoned order within a fixed time. The operative effect is a fresh consideration of the refund claim, rather than final rejection on the existing record.

---

---

Issues: Whether the rejection of the refund claim required reconsideration after affording an opportunity to rectify deficiencies and granting a hearing to the writ petitioner.

Analysis: The writ petition challenged rejection of a refund application on the ground that no hearing had been granted. The record also showed that deficiencies in the refund application had earlier been communicated, which were stated to remain unrectified. In the circumstances, the matter was fit to be disposed of by directing rectification of the notified deficiencies, followed by a hearing and a fresh reasoned decision on the refund claim within a fixed time.

Conclusion: The petitioner was entitled to a fresh consideration of the refund claim after rectifying the deficiencies and being heard.

---