2013 (12) TMI 822 - AT - Customs

Restoration of appeal - Appeal dismissed for want of clearance from the empowered Committee of Secretaries - Held that - appellant was given reasonable opportunity to produce clearance from the Committee on Disputes in terms of the Hon ble Supreme Court s judgment in ONGC case 1991 (10) TMI 58 - SUPREME COURT OF INDIA . Ultimately their appeal came to be dismissed along with a few other appeals on the ground of non-production of clearance from the Committee. This dismissal order was passed on 30-4-2008 and the same also indicated the aforesaid judgments of the Hon ble Supreme Court in ONGC case - Committee had granted clearance to HPCL in 2009 (5) TMI 683 - CESTAT NEW DELHI to pursue their appeal before the CESTAT and they after obtaining such clearance on 14-2-2008 from the Committee filed an application for restoration of the appeal on 6-2-2009 after nearly one year and this delay in the filing of the restoration application was not satisfactorily explained by the appellant to the Tribunal. We have not found in the Hon ble Supreme Court s judgment in Electronics Corporation of India Ltd. case any purport to invalidate the scores of the orders passed by the Tribunal or by various High Courts on the question of maintainability of appeals for want of clearance from the Committee on Disputes. If such interpretation as being given by the learned counsel is given to the Hon ble Supreme Court s judgment in the case of Electronics Corporation of India Ltd. it will have the effect of opening a Pandora s box which in our view is not intended in the judgment passed by the Hon ble Supreme Court in the case of Electronics Corporation Ltd. In our view the recall of the 1992 and 1994 judgments in ONGC case has only prospective effect from 17-2-2011. Right from December 2007 till 17-2-2011 (over three years) the appellant apparently had been pursuing their application before the Committee on Disputes but unsuccessfully. In this scenario our Final Order dated 30-4-2008 insofar as it pertains to the present application must be intact - Restoration of appeal denied.

Summary

Issues:
1. Requirement of clearance from the empowered Committee of Secretaries for appeal restoration.
2. Interpretation of the Hon'ble Supreme Court's judgment in Electronics Corporation of India Ltd. case.
3. Effect of the recall of judgments in ONGC case by the Hon'ble Supreme Court.

Analysis:
1. The appellant filed an application for restoration of appeal No. C/796/2007, which was dismissed for lack of clearance from the empowered Committee of Secretaries. The appellant argued that no such clearance was needed, citing the Hon'ble Supreme Court's judgment in Electronics Corporation of India Ltd. case. The Tribunal noted that the appellant's application before the Committee was not acted upon. However, the Tribunal held that the appellant was required to produce the clearance. The Tribunal distinguished a previous case where clearance was granted to another appellant, emphasizing that the delay in filing the restoration application was not satisfactorily explained. The Tribunal rejected the appellant's argument that the Supreme Court's recall of judgments in ONGC case had retrospective effect, maintaining that the dismissal order was valid until the date of the Supreme Court's judgment.

2. The Tribunal analyzed the Hon'ble Supreme Court's judgment in Electronics Corporation of India Ltd. case and concluded that it did not invalidate previous orders requiring clearance from the Committee on Disputes for appeals. The Tribunal expressed concerns that a different interpretation could lead to unintended consequences and emphasized that the recall of judgments in ONGC case had prospective effect from the date of the Supreme Court's judgment. The Tribunal highlighted that the appellant had been pursuing clearance unsuccessfully for over three years, leading to the rejection of the restoration application.

3. The Tribunal clarified that the recall of judgments in ONGC case had only prospective effect from a specific date. It emphasized that the appellant's pursuit of clearance from the Committee on Disputes for over three years did not alter the validity of the dismissal order. The Tribunal rejected the appellant's argument for restoration based on the retrospective effect of the Supreme Court's recall, maintaining the integrity of its previous order. The ROA application for restoration was ultimately rejected by the Tribunal.