2017 (7) TMI 986 - AT - Central Excise

Principles of Natural Justice - maintainability of appeal - non-appearance of appellant before ld. Commissioner (Appeals) - Held that - in spite of various opportunities of personal hearing given by the first appellate authority, the appellant did not appear before him. Accordingly, the appellate authority has proceeded to decide the appeal without observing the principle of natural justice. I also find that no documents were filed before him. Under the circumstances, I set aside the impugned order and remand the matter to the ld.Commissioner (Appeals) for re-consideration of the case on merit - appeal allowed by way of remand.

Summary

Issues: Appeal against Order-in-Appeal dismissal on grounds of non-appearance and non-production of documents.

The judgment pertains to an appeal filed against Order-in-Appeal No. 60/JSR/2013 passed by the Commissioner (Appeals) of Central Excise & S.Tax, Ranchi. The appellant's representative argued that the Commissioner (Appeals) did not decide the issue on merit but dismissed it due to the appellant's non-appearance and failure to produce necessary documents. The appellant requested the appeal to be sent back for a fresh decision on merit. The Revenue representative acknowledged that the issue was not decided on merit and had no objection to remanding the case for a fresh decision. After hearing both sides and reviewing the records, the Tribunal noted that the Commissioner (Appeals) had dismissed the appeal based on non-appearance and non-production of documents, without considering the merits of the case. Despite opportunities for a personal hearing, the appellant did not appear, leading to a lack of natural justice. Consequently, the Tribunal set aside the impugned order and remanded the matter to the Commissioner (Appeals) for reconsideration on merit. The Tribunal emphasized granting the Appellant a reasonable opportunity to present their case, keeping all issues open for both parties to produce evidence in support. Ultimately, the appeal was allowed by way of remand, ensuring a fair reconsideration of the case.

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