2012 (12) TMI 645 - AT - Central Excise

Non-compliance of the stay order - seeking waiver of pre-deposit of impugned demands - Held that - Appellant had complied with the Stay order passed by the Commissioner (Appeals) and only on the ground of non-communication the dismissal order passed by the Commissioner (Appeals) deserves to be set aside. - as the matter needs verification remand the matter back to the adjudicating authority to verify the relevant records in support of their claim made by the appellant.

Summary

Issues:
1. Appeal for stay of impugned demands and early hearing on stay application.
2. Compliance with stay order leading to dismissal of appeal by Commissioner (Appeals).
3. Request for setting aside dismissal order and restoration of appeal.

Analysis:
1. The appellant filed an appeal along with a stay application and a miscellaneous application for early hearing on the stay application. The miscellaneous application was dismissed as the stay application was already listed. The issue was considered to be narrow, and after granting waiver of pre-deposit of the demands, the appeal was taken up for final disposal.

2. The Commissioner (Appeals) had dismissed the appeal due to alleged non-compliance with the stay order. The appellant contended that they had indeed complied with the stay order, but the communication to the Commissioner (Appeals) was lacking, resulting in the dismissal. An application for restoration of the appeal was also made but was dismissed by the Commissioner (Appeals) citing lack of power to restore. The appellant's counsel argued for setting aside the dismissal order, emphasizing the compliance with the stay order.

3. The Judicial Member, after considering the submissions, noted that the appellant had complied with the stay order, and solely on the ground of non-compliance, the impugned order deserved to be set aside. Consequently, the impugned order was set aside, and the matter was remanded back to the adjudicating authority for verification of relevant records supporting the appellant's claim. The adjudicating authority was directed to pass an adjudication order in accordance with the law. All other issues were kept open, and the appeal along with the stay application were disposed of.