2014 (7) TMI 942 - HC - Service Tax

Restoration of appeal - Non compliance of pre deposit order - Extension of time for making pre deposit - Held that - In view of the stand taken by the learned advocates appearing on behalf of the respective parties as recorded hereinabove and in the facts and circumstances of the case and so as to see that on granting one additional opportunity to the respective appellant to make the deposit on pre-deposit as directed by CESTAT the appeals preferred by the respective appellants is considered on merits, we grant further time to the respective appellants to make the deposit of pre-deposit as directed by CESTAT earlier while passing the order dated 03-01-2012 /31-07-2012 in respective stay applications/stay orders i.e. ₹ 1.20 Crores to be deposited on or before 30/09/2014 and the balance amount of ₹ 30 lakhs to be deposited on or before 15/10/201 - Decided partly in favour of assessee.

Summary

Issues:
Granting additional opportunity for pre-deposit in tax appeals.

Analysis:
The High Court of Gujarat heard tax appeals where the appellants failed to comply with the pre-deposit order by CESTAT, resulting in dismissal of the appeals. The appellants sought more time to deposit the required amount. The appellants proposed to deposit Rs. 1.20 Crores by 30/09/2014 and the remaining Rs. 30 lakhs by 15/10/2014. The court considered the submissions of both parties and granted the appellants an extended deadline to make the pre-deposit as directed by CESTAT. The court ordered that if the full amount of Rs. 1.50 Crores was deposited within the specified time frame, the orders of dismissal by CESTAT would be set aside, allowing the appeals to be considered on their merits. However, failure to deposit the amount within the given time would result in the dismissal of the appeals without further consideration. The court emphasized the importance of compliance with the deposit requirements set by CESTAT for the appeals to proceed.

The court acknowledged the undertakings filed by the appellants agreeing to deposit the required amount and directed them to be taken on record. The decision to grant additional time for the pre-deposit was made to ensure that the appeals could be considered on their merits. The court's order specified the deadlines for depositing the amounts and instructed CESTAT to decide the appeals in accordance with the law and on their own merits upon compliance by the appellants. The judgment clarified that the dismissal of the appeals by CESTAT would be revoked only if the appellants fulfilled the deposit conditions within the extended timeline. Failure to meet the deadline would result in the dismissal of the appeals without further review. The court concluded by disposing of both tax appeals and permitting direct service of the order.

Regarding the Civil Applications filed in connection with the tax appeals, the court noted that since the tax appeals had been disposed of, no orders were required for the Civil Applications. Consequently, the Civil Applications were also considered disposed of in line with the disposal of the tax appeals, bringing the entire matter to a close.