The Supreme Court of India directed to hear the parties in a matter related to the extended period of limitation to the Central Excise Department for the recovery of dues and receiving penalty.
The limited issue that arose in the appeals is with regard to the grievance of the appellant-Department insofar as the impugned order is concerned under which two questions of law which the appellant-Department sought to raise before the High Court in the context of extended period of limitation and imposition of penalty, were not permitted to be raised.
The appellant sought to raise additional questions with regard to the Tribunal not permitting extended period of limitation to the appellant-Department for recovery of dues and for receiving penalties imposed by the Adjudicating Authority.
The counsel for the appellant submitted that the High Court could not have considered the merits of the case(s) at the admission stage, even with regard to the raising of substantial questions of law inasmuch as ultimately on hearing the parties, the Court could have assigned reasons as to whether the substantial questions of law were made good by the appellant or it had to be answered in favour of the respondent.
Therefore, it was submitted that portion of the order declining to raise substantial questions of law on the aspect of extended period of limitation and on penalty may be setaside and an opportunity may be given to the appellant herein to raise those substantial questions of law and on the same being raised, the High Court could frame the said questions of law and the High Court could answer the same one way or the other.
The counsel appearing for the respondent contended that High Court has considered the case(s) of the parties on merits and has declined to raise the substantial questions of law on the aspect of extended period of limitation as well as on penalty and there is no merit in these appeals.
A Two-Judge Bench comprising Justice BV Nagarathna and Justice Sanjay Karol observed that “In the circumstances, that portion of the order of the High Court declining to raise the substantial questions of law as sought for by the appellant-Revenue herein is setaside and the High Court is now requested to hear the parties by raising the substantial questions of law on the issue of extended period of limitation as well as on the issue of imposition of penalty. The High Court shall now consider the aforesaid aspect of the matter(s) on its own merits and dispose of the appeals filed by the appellant herein in accordance with law.”
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