2017 (8) TMI 1154 - AT - Central Excise

Condonation of delay of 722 days in filing appeal - case of appellant is that there was some mismanagement of the affairs of the company in India by the Managing Director and therefore the company did not come to know of the order passed in the proceedings - Held that - appellant has put forward reasonable cause to condone the delay. However, since the delay is of 722 days each in both the appeals, which is highly inordinate, we are of the considered view that appellant has to be put to payment terms - COD application allowed, subject to payment - decided partly in favor of appellant.

Summary

Issues:
Delay in filing appeals, financial impropriety by the managing director, condonation of delay, payment terms for condonation.

Analysis:
The judgment revolves around the applications filed by the applicant seeking condonation of a significant delay of 722 days each in filing the appeals. The applicant, represented by Ld. Counsel Shri G. Natarajan, explained that the company is a subsidiary of a foreign entity and faced financial impropriety issues by the Indian management, specifically the Managing Director, Mr. Murali Mohan. The delay in filing the appeals was attributed to the mismanagement of the company's affairs in India by Mr. Murali Mohan, who was suspended pending an inquiry due to financial irregularities. The applicant, upon discovering the need to appeal against a past order, sought legal counsel and decided to file appeals with a condonation application due to the delay.

The Revenue, represented by Ld. A.R Shri K.P. Muralidharan, opposed the applications citing the significant and unexplained delay of 722 days. However, the Tribunal, comprising Ms. Sulekha Beevi C.S. and Shri Madhu Mohan Damodhar, considered the submissions from both sides. The Tribunal acknowledged the reasons provided by the appellant regarding the mismanagement by the Managing Director and the ongoing legal actions against him, leading to the company's lack of awareness of the order passed. Despite recognizing the reasonable cause presented by the appellant, the Tribunal emphasized the highly inordinate delay of 722 days in each appeal.

Consequently, the Tribunal allowed the Miscellaneous Applications (COD) for condonation of delay, subject to the appellant's compliance with payment terms. The appellant was directed to pay Rs.10,000/- in one appeal and Rs.20,000/- in the other appeal by a specified date, failing which the applications would stand dismissed automatically. The operative part of the order was pronounced in open court on 5.6.2017, outlining the decision and the conditions for condonation.