Appellate remand confined to matters actually in appeal; unchallenged exoneration cannot be reopened without statutory review.

An appellate authority may remand only matters actually placed in appeal before it; it cannot reopen and remand a concluded exoneration that was never challenged by departmental appeal or statutory review. Here, the appeal concerned only the finding of guilt under Section 6(2) of the Gold (Control) Act, while the exoneration under Section 27(1) remained unappealed. The proper route to challenge that exoneration was the statutory review mechanism, not a remand in the pending appeal. The remand of the Section 27(1) issue was therefore without jurisdiction and unsustainable.

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Issues: Whether the Collector (Appeals) could, under Section 80A(3) of the Gold (Control) Act, 1968, remand for fresh adjudication an issue relating to exoneration under Section 27(1) of the Act when the appeal before him challenged only the finding under Section 6(2) of the Act and no departmental review or appeal had been filed on the exoneration.

Analysis: The dispute before the lower appellate authority arose only from the finding of guilt under Section 6(2) of the Act. The finding exonerating the respondent under Section 27(1) had not been put in issue by any appeal or by the department through the statutory review mechanism. In that setting, the power under Section 80A(3) to confirm, modify, annul, or remand an order could be exercised only in respect of a matter actually pending in appeal. The revisional mechanism under Section 82(2) was the proper route for the department to challenge an unappealed exoneration. Since that course was not taken, the lower appellate authority had no jurisdiction to reopen the concluded finding under Section 27(1) and remand it.

Conclusion: The remand of the Section 27(1) issue was held to be without jurisdiction and unsustainable.

Final Conclusion: The reference failed because the Tribunal's view that the lower appellate authority could not remand a non-appealed issue was upheld, and the application was rejected.

Ratio Decidendi: An appellate authority may exercise its powers of modification, annulment, or remand only in respect of matters actually brought before it in appeal; it cannot suo motu reopen and remand an issue not under appeal in the absence of statutory review or appeal by the department.

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