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2014 (7) TMI 565 - HC - Income TaxPower to grant stay u/s 254(2A) of the Act Stay to be granted beyond 365 days Held that - The Tribunal had no authority to extend the period of stay beyond a period of 365 days from the initial date of grant of stay - as 365 days had elapsed since 09.01.2013, when the initial stay was granted, the assessee could not approach the Tribunal for any further extension of stay the decision in Commissioner of Income Tax- II Versus M/s Maruti Suzuki (India) Limited, Income Tax Appellate Tribunal & Another 2014 (2) TMI 1037 - DELHI HIGH COURT followed - there is no bar for grant of relief if the Court is of the opinion that the circumstances and the ends of justice so warrant assessee had already been granted conditional stay by the Tribunal in respect of the appeal and that the Tribunal has already heard the matter finally and has reserved orders thus, the stay order granted by the Tribunal is to be continued till the disposal of the appeal by the Tribunal Decided in favour of Assessee.
Issues:
1. Extension of stay of recovery by the Tribunal beyond 365 days. 2. Jurisdiction of the High Court to grant stay under Article 226 of the Constitution. Issue 1: Extension of stay of recovery by the Tribunal beyond 365 days The petitioner filed an appeal before the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal against an order by the Dispute Resolution Panel. The Tribunal initially granted a stay of demand on the condition of depositing a sum of Rs. 25 lacs. Subsequently, the Tribunal extended the interim stay multiple times. However, a Division Bench decision clarified that the Tribunal cannot extend the stay beyond 365 days from the initial grant. As the 365-day period had lapsed, the petitioner could not seek further extension from the Tribunal. Despite the appeal being heard and orders reserved, the petitioner approached the High Court seeking a stay on the recovery of the balance amount till the appeal's disposal. Issue 2: Jurisdiction of the High Court to grant stay under Article 226 of the Constitution The High Court considered previous orders where it extended stays granted by the Tribunal till the appeal's disposal under Article 226 of the Constitution. It was noted that if circumstances and justice warrant, the High Court has the authority to grant such relief. Referring to the Maruti Suzuki case, the High Court reiterated that there is no bar to extending the stay if deemed necessary. In this case, since the Tribunal had already granted conditional stay, heard the matter, and reserved orders, the High Court deemed it just to continue the stay until the appeal's disposal, thereby disposing of the writ petition in favor of the petitioner.
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