HC held that the Appellate Authority had not independently...

HC held that the Appellate Authority had not independently examined whether sufficient cause existed for the delay and had wrongly rejected the GST appeal by relying on an earlier decision without testing its relevance to the facts. It reiterated that, although the appellate forum cannot condone delay beyond the statutory limit, the statutory right of appeal is valuable and, where sufficient cause is shown, the HC may exercise writ jurisdiction to condone the delay in the interests of justice and direct disposal on merits. The rejection was set aside, the delay was condoned subject to costs, and the appeal was remitted for decision in accordance with law.