Facts of the Case

The Commissioner of Central GST and Central Excise, J&K, Jammu, filed this appeal under Section 35G of the Central Excise Act, 1944, against a final order dated 06.03.2018 passed by CESTAT, Chandigarh, in favour of the respondent, M/s V M Timber Industries. The appeal was filed with a delay of 1496 days, and a separate application seeking condonation of that delay was moved alongside it. This case, while brought by an authority styled 'Commissioner of Central GST and Central Excise', concerns a challenge to a Central Excise Act order, not a GST law question.

Issues Involved

  1. Whether the extraordinary delay of 1496 days in filing the appeal under Section 35G of the Central Excise Act, 1944, could be condoned.

Petitioner's Arguments

  • The appellant department's counsel fairly submitted that a similar issue had already arisen in a connected appeal, CEA No. 10/2020, where the same appellant/applicant had sought condonation of delay on similar grounds.

Respondent's Arguments

  • No independent opposing arguments are recorded; the respondent was noted as unrepresented in this brief order.

Court Order / Findings

  • Noted that in the connected appeal, CEA No. 10/2020, a Division Bench of the same High Court, by order dated 23.05.2022, had already declined to accept a similar condonation application and dismissed that appeal as time-barred.
  • Held that the reasoning in that earlier order applied on all fours to the present condonation application.
  • Dismissed the appeal as barred by limitation, along with all connected applications.

Important Clarification

This order does not decide any question of GST law — it dismisses a Central Excise Act appeal on the threshold ground of limitation, applying precedent from an earlier, similar appeal by the same department. The underlying merits of the Central Excise dispute between the department and the timber company were never reached.

Sections Involved

  • Section 35G, Central Excise Act, 1944 — appeal to the High Court from a CESTAT order
  • Limitation Act, 1963 (principles of condonation of delay, applied by reference to precedent)

Decision – In Favour of

The respondent (M/s V M Timber Industries) — the department's appeal was dismissed as barred by limitation without reaching the merits; this is a threshold dismissal, not a decision on the underlying Central Excise dispute, and has no GST-law content.

Case Details

High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh at Jammu; CEA No. 60/2023 (the operative order refers to the appeal number as CEA No. 12/2023, apparently by a clerical slip in the original text); Coram: Hon'ble the Chief Justice N. Kotiswar Singh and Hon'ble Mr. Justice Wasim Sadiq Nargal; Date of Order: 24.04.2023.

Link to Download the Order

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