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2012 (7) TMI 843 - CESTAT NEW DELHICondonation of delay - Held that:- Ordinarily the period of limitation for filing an appeal against the adjudication order is sixty days from the date of communication of order/decision to the party concerned. However, the proviso to Section 35(1) authorizes Commissioner (Appeals) to extend the period of limitation for a further period of thirty days if he satisfies that the appellant was prevented from presenting the appeal within sixty days by a sufficient cause - plea of the appellant is that appeal could not be filed within sixty days from the date of service of the order-in-original on the appellant as his Counsel was suffering from viral fever. The sickness of a lawyer or the party concern in our view is a sufficient ground for condoning the delay in filing of appeal. Just because the appellant did not produce the medical certificate of illness of his Counsel, in our view Commissioner (Appeals) was not justified in declining the request to condone the delay in filing of appeal. The Commissioner (Appeals) was expected to take liberal view of the matter instead of shutting the door of justice on the appellant by taking hyper technical view of the matter. Thus, under the circumstances, we find it difficult to sustain the order of Commissioner (Appeals) refusing to condone the delay of seven days in filing of appeal. Accordingly, the impugned order is set aside and the matter is remanded back to the Commissioner (Appeals) - Decided partly in favour of assessee.
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