https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=401087 The Bombay HC held that a 13-year delay in adjudicating show-cause notices (SCNs) violated principles of natural justice and was legally untenable. The court ruled that revenue authorities must adjudicate SCNs expeditiously within a reasonable period, and 13 years cannot be considered reasonable regardless of no statutory limitation period. The revenue's practice of keeping SCNs in a "dormant list" or "call book" without informing the petitioner was rejected as justification for delay. The court found the delay attributable to respondents, not the petitioner, who reasonably believed the matter was closed after years of inaction. The timing of the final order after the writ petition filing demonstrated improper haste following prolonged inaction. The adjudication proceedings were declared invalid and the petition was allowed in favor of the petitioner. en-us Thu, 26 Nov 2020 00:00:00 +0530 Thu, 17 Jul 2025 17:32:00 +0530 TaxTMI RSS Generator https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=401087 The Bombay HC held that a 13-year delay in adjudicating show-cause notices (SCNs) violated principles of natural justice and was legally untenable. The court ruled that revenue authorities must adjudicate SCNs expeditiously within a reasonable period, and 13 years cannot be considered reasonable regardless of no statutory limitation period. The revenue's practice of keeping SCNs in a "dormant list" or "call book" without informing the petitioner was rejected as justification for delay. The court found the delay attributable to respondents, not the petitioner, who reasonably believed the matter was closed after years of inaction. The timing of the final order after the writ petition filing demonstrated improper haste following prolonged inaction. The adjudication proceedings were declared invalid and the petition was allowed in favor of the petitioner. Case-Laws Central Excise Thu, 26 Nov 2020 00:00:00 +0530 https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=401087