Limitation under FERA appeal rules turns on receipt date, and delay beyond 90 days could not be condoned.

Section 52(2) of the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act, 1973 required an appeal to be filed within 45 days of service of the order, with limited discretion to entertain it up to 90 days on sufficient cause. The relevant date for limitation was the date of receipt of the appeal in the Registry, not the date of despatch. As the appeal was received after the outer 90-day limit, the Board had no power to condone the delay and the appeal was barred by limitation.

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Issues: Whether the appeal was barred by limitation and whether delay beyond the statutory period could be condoned under section 52(2) of the Foreign Exchange Regulation Act, 1973.

Analysis: Section 52(2) required an appeal to be preferred within forty-five days from service of the order, with a further discretion to entertain it up to ninety days if sufficient cause was shown. The Board held that the relevant date for computing limitation was the date of receipt of the appeal in the Registry, not the date of despatch. Since the appeal was received after expiry of ninety days, the Board had no power to condone the delay beyond that outer limit.

Conclusion: The appeal was barred by limitation and could not be entertained.

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