Natural justice in appellate proceedings requires a fair hearing; an ex parte order was set aside and remanded.

An ex parte order-in-appeal was set aside because the record showed that the appellants' adjournment and personal hearing request had been delivered to the appellate authority on the hearing date. In the absence of contrary material, the authority was found to have proceeded hastily without giving a reasonable and effective opportunity of hearing, amounting to breach of natural justice. The matter was remanded for fresh decision after granting the appellants a proper personal hearing.

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Issues: Whether the ex parte order-in-appeal was liable to be set aside for breach of natural justice and the matter remanded for fresh hearing.

Analysis: The written request for adjournment and personal hearing was found to have been delivered to the office of the appellate authority on the same day as the scheduled hearing. The record did not support the finding that no request for adjournment had been received. In the absence of any contrary material, the appeal was decided ex parte in haste without affording a reasonable and effective opportunity of hearing.

Conclusion: The ex parte order-in-appeal was set aside and the matter was remanded for fresh decision after granting reasonable and effective opportunity of personal hearing to the appellants.

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