2013 (3) TMI 793

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....e heard together and being decided by the present order. 3. Instant writ petitions have been filed by the petitioners with the limited grievance that appeals were preferred before the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal along with the stay applications and on the stay applications, the matter was heard on 14-6-2012 [2012 (285) E.L.T. 388 (Tri.-Del.)] and the learned Tribunal after hearing the parties while disposing of the stay applications on 4-7-2012 observed as under :- "We have considered arguments on both the sides. Prima facie the mis-declaration, if any, made by the applicants are not resulting in any short levy of duty or contravention of import policy. At best there may be contravention of declaration give....

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....129B(2A) of the Customs Act, 1962 the Appellate Tribunal has to decide the appeal within a period of three years from the date on which such appeal is filed and where an order of stay is made in any proceedings relating to an appeal filed under sub-sec. (1) of Sec. 129A, the Tribunal is under obligation to dispose of the appeal within a period of 180 days from the date of such order and there is a further mandate that if the appeal could not be disposed of by the Tribunal within the time stipulated, on expiry of the period such stay granted by the Tribunal automatically stands vacated. 5. Counsel further submits that when their appeals could not have been heard by the Tribunal within the statutory period of 180 days and the period o....

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....r and as expressed in the Larger Bench matter, namely, IPCL v. CCE, Vadodara (supra) cannot be faulted. However, we should not be understood as holding that any latitude is given to the Tribunal to extend the period of stay except on good cause and only if the Tribunal is satisfied that the matter could not be heard and disposed of by reason of the fault of the Tribunal for reasons not attributable to the assessee." 7. Counsel submits that if the Tribunal is not in a position to decide the appeal pending adjudication at least the petitioners-assessees may not be deprived of their legitimate right and apart from the fact that in the instant cases the stay applications came to be decided by the Tribunal after hearing the parties, at l....