TMI Blog1998 (12) TMI 583X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... , Hyderabad seeking relief on the sales turnover of wires drawn out of tax suffered wire rods. The relief was granted based on the decision of the Supreme Court in Telangana Steel Industries v. State of Andhra Pradesh [1994] 93 STC 187. 2.. The appeals were filed with enormous delay. The appeals for the years 1983-84 and 1984-85 were preferred on April 28, 1990, whereas the appeals for the other four years were filed on April 2, 1994 and April 6, 1994. The delay is about three years for the assessment years 1983-84, 1984-85, 1988-89 and 1989-90. The appellate authority condoned the delay by a cryptic order after hearing the arguments of counsel. The following endorsement is found on the file: Condoned. Admitted and heard the appeal. ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... given by the assessee constituted sufficient cause for not preferring the appeal within time and the appellate authority failed to discharge this duty. We have further held that the consequential order passed on merits also becomes illegal. We have further held that the Commissioner s revisional order cannot also be sustained for the reasons given therein. Hence, we set aside both the orders, i.e., the revisional order of the Commissioner as well as order of the Appellate Deputy Commissioner and directed the appellate authority to consider the question of condonation of delay afresh and deal with the appeals accordingly. These appeals could also have been disposed of in a similar manner, but for the fact that there are distinguishing featu ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n for condonation of delay), remained silent thereafter till the Supreme Court gave its verdict. In vaguest possible terms, it was stated in the affidavit that the matter was pending before the courts in India and before the Supreme Court. The reasonable inference to be drawn is that the appellant was content with the benefit of set-off of tax granted by the State Government soon after the adverse decision of the High Court and proceeded on the basis that no exception ought to be taken to the levy of tax on wires and accordingly conducted himself by collecting the tax and paying it to the State. Moreover, when he could file two appeals in April, 1990 in respect of two assessment years despite the pendency of appeals in the Supreme Court, wh ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of Andhra Pradesh v. Venkataramana Chuduva Muramura Merchant [1984] 57 STC 179 has been strongly relied upon before the Commissioner as well as before us. Our attention has been drawn to the following passage at page 185: The other remedy open to the assessees is to prefer an appeal or revision, as the case may be, along with a petition for condoning the delay, on the ground that in view of the position of law obtaining on the date of receipt of the impugned order, they decided not to file an appeal; but, since the subsequent decision establishes the said assumption to be incorrect, and further that the tax has been illegally collected from them, they are now preferring the appeal and that the same should constitute sufficient cause ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... appellate authority as regards the mistake of law, as observed supra, there could be no scope for any such mistaken impression. Similarly situated assessees including the appellant s brother doing business in the same area (as seen from the record), were agitating the matters before the High Court and the Supreme Court. The appellant, for reasons best known to him, did not take any steps to contest the legality of the levy on wires drawn out of tax-suffered wire rods. It is not even the appellant s case that he did not file appeals earlier as he thought it was a futile remedy and that the appeals were filed soon after coming to know of the decision of the Supreme Court. It is not averred in the affidavit filed before the Appellate Deputy Co ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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