Extended limitation notification applied to restore appeals dismissed as time-barred, subject to compliance with stipulated conditions.

The extended limitation notification dated 2 November 2023 was applied to prevent a rigid cut-off from defeating appeals filed within the enlarged period. The HC accepted that orders passed on 25 July 2023, and appeals filed on 12 January 2024 before 31 January 2024, attracted the benefit of the extension, and that the appellate authority should not have dismissed them as time-barred merely because the orders were after 31 March 2023. The dismissal orders were set aside, the appeals restored for decision on merits, and restoration remained conditional on compliance with the notification, including payment of the differential amount within the time granted.

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Issues: Whether the Petitioners were entitled to the benefit of the notification dated 2 November 2023 extending the time for filing appeals, and whether the appellate authority's orders dismissing the appeals as time-barred were liable to be set aside with restoration of the appeals.

Analysis: The adjudication orders were passed on 25 July 2023 and the appeals were filed on 12 January 2024, before the extended date of 31 January 2024. The Court followed the view that the cut-off date in the notification could not be applied so rigidly as to deny the benefit where the orders were passed within about three months prior to the notification. It accepted that the notification was intended to grant relief in appropriate cases, and held that the Petitioners should not be denied the benefit merely because the orders were after 31 March 2023. The Court also noted that restoration of the appeals would remain subject to compliance with the conditions in the notification, and treated the additional payment proposed by the Petitioners as substantial compliance in the special circumstances of the case.

Conclusion: The Petitioners were held entitled to the benefit of the extended limitation period, the dismissal orders were set aside, and the appeals were restored for decision on merits subject to compliance with the stipulated conditions, including payment of the differential amount within the time granted.

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