2019 (11) TMI 613

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....lant's application for condonation of 67 days delay in filing the appeal from the date of the receipt of the order dated 23rd August, 2018 passed by the Committee of Chief Commissioners under Section 86(2) of the Finance Act was rejected. The order dated 23rd August, 2018 of the Committee of Chief Commissioner directed filing of an appeal to the Tribunal from the order dated 26th March, 2018 of the Commissioner of Central Excise. 2. The Revenue has urged the following question of law for our consideration :- (i) Whether on the facts and in the circumstances of the case and in law, the Tribunal was justified in condoning the delay of 67 days in filing the appeal before it? 3. The appellant had on 20th October, 2....

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.... for condonation of delay, the Tribunal granted time to the appellant to file an affidavit in support of their application explaining the delay. In the affidavit as filed by the respondent, the delay of 67 days in filing the appeal was stated to be on account of re-organization and re-structuring of the Department in view of introduction of Goods and Services Tax Act (GST). The impugned order of the Tribunal while rejecting the application for condonation of delay records the fact that the GST was introduced w.e.f. 1st July, 2017 and in this case, the order of the Commissioner which is being challenged itself is dated 26th March, 2018 and the order of the Committee of Chief Commissioners directing filing of the appeal from an order of the C....

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....note that the statute provides a specific time-period for filing an appeal. The parties governed by the Act and Finance Act are required to adhere to the time line for filing an appeal to the Tribunal under the Acts. However, the Act itself empowers the Tribunal to condone delay in filing an appeal, if sufficient cause is shown for the same. The words 'sufficient cause' would mean the cause/reason for the delay is bona fide and does not suffer from negligence. In this case, as noted by the Tribunal in the impugned order, no sufficient cause has been shown by the Commissioner. In fact, the application as originally filed for condonation of delay merely stated that there is a _______ (Blank) days of delay in filing the appeal and that this de....