Appeal can’t be rejected merely due to non-submission of certified copy of order appealed against within one week of filing of appeal: Orissa HC

Case details: Shree Jagannath Traders v. Commissioner of State Tax Odisha, Cuttack - [2021] 129 taxmann.com 206 (Orissa)

Judiciary and Counsel Details

• • Dr. S. Muralidhar, CJ and K.R. Mohapatra, J.
  • V. Narasingh, Adv. for the Petitioner. 
  • Sunil Kumar Mishra, Standing Counsel for the Respondent.

Facts of the Case

The assessee filed appeal against and order before Appellate Authority within time electronically accompanied by a downloaded copy of order appealed against since the Lawyer who had filed the appeal was in self quarantine as he had come into contact with a client who had tested positive for Covid-19. Thereafter it submitted a certified copy of order appealed against belatedly after prescribed period i.e. after seven days of the filing of the appeal. The Appellate Authority dismissed appeal for not being filed in time as a certified copy of order appealed against should be submitted within one week of filing of appeal. It filed writ petition against the same.

High Court Held

The Honorable High Court observed that as per Section 107(4) of CSGT Act, the Appellate Authority may, if he is satisfied that, the appellant was prevented by sufficient cause from presenting the appeal within the aforesaid period of three months or six months, as the case may be, allow it to be presented within a further period of one month. Since, in this case, the downloaded copy of order appealed against was in fact submitted along with appeal which was otherwise filed within time. It was a case of substantial compliance and interests of justice ought not to be constrained on by a hyper technical view of requirement that a certified copy of order appealed against should be submitted within one week of filing of appeal. Therefore, the order of Appellate Authority to dismiss appeal deserved to be set aside and Appellate Authority was directed to decide appeal on merits.