TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2022 (9) TMI 734
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.... No.70798 of 2019- Application for condonation of delay. Heard learned Additional Chief Standing Counsel on the application for condonation of delay. As per office report dated 30.05.2019, there is a delay of two years seven months and eight days for filing the revision. It is contended that in a similar matter namely Sales/Trade Tax Revision Defective No.6 of 2020, this Court vide order dated 07.09.2022 has rejected the application for condonation of delay in filing the revision where the delay was of 163 days. In the instant case also, it has been indicated in the application for condonation of delay that the order passed by the learned Tribunal was served on the revisionist on 29.07.2016 although a proposal for filing of the ....
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....of the said application by indicating that initially a proposal had been sent for filing of a revision petition and thereafter the documents were sent. Later, the permission was sought for filing of revision which was received from the law department vide sanction letter dated 15.07.2019 and a request subsequently was made in July, 2019 to the office of the learned Chief Standing counsel, High Court, Lucknow for filing of a revision. The file was allotted for drafting after a period of almost one month and it took the learned Standing counsel a period of almost four and half months to file the revision and hence the delayed filing of revision. 8. The delay which often occurs on the part of the department in filing the appeals/revis....
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...., including the Government. 29.In our view, it is the right time to inform all the government bodies, their agencies and instrumentalities that unless they have reasonable and acceptable explanation for the delay and there was bona fide effort, there is no need to accept the usual explanation that the file was kept pending for several months/years due to considerable degree of procedural red tape in the process. The government departments are under a special obligation to ensure that they perform their duties with diligence and commitment. Condonation of delay is an exception and should not be used as an anticipated benefit for the government departments. The law shelters everyone under the same light and should not be swirled for ....
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....d for condonation of delay. In fact, other than the lethargy and incompetence of the petitioner, there is nothing which has been put on record. We have repeatedly discouraged State Governments and public authorities in adopting an approach that they can walk in to the Supreme Court as and when they please ignoring the period of limitation prescribed by the statutes, as if the Limitation statute does not apply to them. In this behalf, suffice to refer to our judgment in State of M.P. v. Bherulal [State of M.P. v. Bherulal, (2020) 10 SCC 654 : (2021) 1 SCC (Civ) 101 : (2021) 1 SCC (Cri) 117 : (2021) 1 SCC (L&S) 84] and State of Odisha v. Sunanda Mahakuda [State of Odisha v. Sunanda Mahakuda, (2021) 11 SCC 560] . The leeway which was given to ....
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....h which the Union of India had approached this Court in a matter like this, we consider it appropriate to impose special costs of Rs 1 lakh in this case to be recovered from the officer(s) concerned, to be deposited with the Supreme Court Advocates-on-Record Welfare Fund within four weeks. 9. The special leave petitions are dismissed as time-barred in terms aforesaid. Pending application stands disposed of. 10. Incidentally, the judgment of the Apex Court in the case of Central Tibetan Schools (supra) is a judgment by three Hon'ble Judges. 11. The Apex Court in the case of Volex Interconnect (supra) has held has under:- "2.This is one more case of what we have already categorised as "certificate cases....
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....hs for the revision to be drafted despite limitation period of three months being prescribed under the statute for filing of a revision. All these facts indicate the casual and cavalier attitude on the part of the department in filing of the revision belatedly, rather, as observed by the Apex Court in the case of Central Tibetan Schools (supra) other than the lethargy and incompetence of the revisionist, there is nothing which has been brought on record to explain the delay. 14. Keeping in view the aforesaid discussion including the judgments of the Apex Court in the cases of Living Media India Ltd (supra), Central Tibetan Schools (supra) & Volex Interconnect (supra) , all judgments being of a latter date to the judgments cited by ....