2012 (7) TMI 439 - AT - Service Tax

Rejection of appeal by first appellate authority - invoking question of limitation - Held that - The appellant had a right to file an appeal within three months from the date of receipt of the order with a further period of three months for seeking condonation of delay from the first appellate authority, whereas in this case the appellant had received the order on 28.8.2010 and had filed an appeal before the first appellate authority on 14.6.2011, thus beyond the period of prescribed six months - against assessee.

Summary

Issues: Stay petition for waiver of pre-deposit of penalties; Appeal rejection on the question of limitation.

Stay Petition Analysis:
The stay petition was filed seeking the waiver of pre-deposit of penalties involved. The judge noted that the appeal itself could be disposed of at that juncture. After hearing both sides, it was decided to take up the appeal for disposal after dealing with the stay petition. The judge found that the first appellate authority had rejected the appeal based on the question of limitation. The appellant had received the original order on 28.8.2010 and had the right to file an appeal within three months from that date, with a further three months for seeking condonation of delay. However, the appellant filed the appeal before the first appellate authority on 14.6.2011, which was beyond the prescribed six-month period. Citing the case of Singh Enterprises v. CCE 2008 (221) ELT 163 (SC), the judge held that the appeal was correctly dismissed by the first appellate authority due to being beyond the limitation period. Consequently, the stay petition and appeal were disposed of.

Limitation Issue Analysis:
The crux of the issue revolved around the rejection of the appeal by the first appellate authority on grounds of limitation. The judge observed that the appellant had indeed filed the appeal beyond the prescribed period of six months from the date of receiving the original order. The judge referenced the case law of Singh Enterprises v. CCE 2008 (221) ELT 163 (SC) to support the decision that the appeal was correctly dismissed by the first appellate authority due to being time-barred. The judge found no fault in the order of the first appellate authority in rejecting the appeal on the basis of exceeding the limitation period. Consequently, the appeal against such an order was deemed not maintainable, leading to the dismissal of both the stay petition and the appeal itself.