2019 (11) TMI 1400

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....parties, the issues involved therein are identical. However, for the sake of convenience, the facts are extracted from WP No.15783/2019. 2. In WP No.15783/2019, the petitioner has filed the instant writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India challenging the order dated 10.05.2019 passed by the M.P. Commercial Tax Appellate Board, Bhopal (respondent No.2) in Reference No.234/CTAB/08 for the year 1997-98 whereby the Board has declined to condone the delay in filing reference application and resultantly, dismissed the application under Section 5 of the Limitation Act, 1963 (for short "the Act of 1963") as well as the reference application. 3. Brief facts, relevant for the disposal of present petition, are that the petiti....

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.....2008 was first served on C&F Agent of the petitioner Company located at Indore and thereafter, the same was forwarded to the Head Office situate at Mumbai only on 12.06.2008. It is stated that due to the sudden resignation tendered by the then General Manager, Shri Nadeem A. Ghazani, who was well aware of the facts and circumstances of the case, the Management could not get updated about the development in the case till their legal counsel apprised the Management about the same when the order was published in one of the Sales Tax Journal and thus, the delay was caused due to the bona fide reason and it was not deliberate. Learned counsel further contends that the respondent No.2 has adopted a pedantic approach while dismissing the applicat....

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....ower to condone the delay, if sufficient cause is shown for not availing the remedy within the stipulated time. 15. The expression "sufficient cause" employed in Section 5 of the Indian Limitation Act, 1963 and similar other statutes is elastic enough to enable the courts to apply the law in a meaningful manner which sub serves the ends of justice. Although, no hard and fast rule can be laid down in dealing with the applications for condonation of delay, this Court has justifiably advocated adoption of a liberal approach in condoning the delay of short duration and a stricter approach where the delay is inordinate-Collector (L.A.) v. Katiji (1987) 2 SCC 107, N. Balakrishnan v. M. Krishnamurthy (1998) 7 SCC 123 and Vedabai v. Shanta....