TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2001 (8) TMI 1362
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....n order passed by the Trade Tax Appellate Tribunal, Faizabad Bench, Faizabad, as one member has signed the judgment and put the date as 13th September, 2000, mentioning the designation below the name as Member, Trade Tax Tribunal, Peeth Pratham (Bench-1), Kanpur, while the other member has signed the same judgment putting the date as 28th August, 2000, and mentioning the designation below the name as Member, Trade Tax Tribunal, Faizabad Peeth (Faizabad Bench), Faizabad. 4.. The court has perused the impugned order passed in Second Appeal Nos. 53 of 2000 and 60 of 2000 (assessment year 1998-99) M/s. Sonali Trading Co., Galla Mandi, Sultanpur v. Commissioner of Trade Tax, Uttar Pradesh). 5.. After the operative part of the order, the de....
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....rused: "69. Constitution of the Tribunal.-(1) The headquarters of the President of the Tribunal shall be at Lucknow, and he shall exercise concurrent jurisdiction over all circles in Uttar Pradesh and may recall any case for hearing by himself. (2) The headquarters and jurisdiction of other single member benches, referred to in clause (a) of sub-section (10), of section 10, shall be such as the State Government may, from time to time, in consultation with the President, notify. (3) The President, may, from time to time, constitute benches of two or more members, and specify the jurisdiction and place of sitting of such benches, as he may consider necessary. (4) In every bench of two or more members, the number of members from ea....
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....e within the meaning of clause (d) of sub-section (2) of section 4A shall be filed before the President and shall be heard and disposed of by a bench of three members. (d) The President may, if he so thinks fit- (i) direct an appeal to be heard and decided by a larger bench; (ii) transfer an appeal from one bench to another bench. (e) In a case before a bench consisting of two or more members any order other than an order finally disposing of the case may be passed by any one of the members constituting the bench. ................. (11) The place of sitting and procedure of, and the manner of presenting appeals and other documents to the Tribunal shall, subject to the rules, be such as the Tribunal may deem fit to adopt. ....
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....rcle on the date of delivery of judgment as provided in rule 69 of the U.P. Trade Tax Rules, 1948, and hence the order so passed is not a valid judgment. 12.. In the instant matter, there are two dates mentioned in the judgment under the signatures of each member of the Tribunal which shows that the date of pronouncement of judgment by one member is different and by another member is different. 13.. In this regard, the case of Surendra Singh v. State of U.P. reported in AIR 1954 SC 194, in which honourable Supreme Court has relied upon the judgment of the Calcutta High Court consisting of nine Judges in the year 1867 in the case of Mahomed Akil v. Asadunnissa Bibee, 9 WR 1 (FB) (B), is liable to be perused. In that case honoura....
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....e, however, such a draft judgment may have been signed beforehand, it is nothing but a draft till formally delivered as the judgment of the court. Only then does it crystallize into a full fledged judgment and become operative. It follows that the Judge who "delivers" the judgment or causes it to be delivered by a brother Judge, must be in existence as a member of the court at the moment of delivery so that he can, if necessary, stop delivery and say that he has changed his mind. There is no need for him to be physically present in court but he must be in existence as a member of the court and be in a position to stop delivery and effect an alteration should there be any last minute change of mind on his part. 16. The honourabl....