Rectification is limited to apparent mistakes on the record and cannot be used to seek review of an earlier order.

Rectification under Section 35C is limited to correcting mistakes apparent from the record, and cannot be used to reopen a disputed issue or seek review of an earlier order. A contention requiring fresh examination of whether penalty was sustainable under Rule 151, especially where the point was not previously raised or decided, falls outside rectification. The Tribunal has no power to review its own order, so the application was not maintainable.

---

---

Issues: Whether the application seeking rectification could be entertained when the alleged error required review of the earlier order and was not an apparent mistake on the record.

Analysis: Rectification under Section 35C is confined to correcting mistakes apparent from the record. A contention that requires fresh examination of whether penalty was sustainable under Rule 151, particularly when the point was neither raised nor decided earlier, goes beyond rectification. The power to rectify cannot be used as a substitute for review, and the Tribunal has no power to review its own order.

Conclusion: The alleged error was not a mistake apparent from the record, and the rectification application was not maintainable.

Ratio Decidendi: A rectification application cannot be used to re-argue a contentious issue or to secure a review of the earlier order; only an obvious mistake apparent from the record is amenable to correction.

---