The Hindu : National : Order missing, judge upset

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Sep 10, 2004

National

National

Order missing, judge upset

By Our Legal Correspondent

NEW DELHI, SEPT. 9 . In a rare instance in recent times the Supreme Court today recalled its own judgment within minutes of pronouncing it giving an excise duty relief of Rs. 803 crores to Indian Tobacco Company Limited. The case is now listed for further orders tomorrow.

A Bench, comprising Justices Ruma Pal and P. Venkatarama Reddi, had reserved the judgment in December last. Today, Ms. Justice Ruma Pal, who was sitting with Justice Arun Kumar, delivered the judgment in the packed court hall allowing the ITC appeals. Thereafter, the order was given to the ITC counsel for perusal. She told him that some corrections had to be carried out and that the other Judge had not signed it.

Shortlived jubilation

The counsel and company officials were jubilant over the judgment, but it was shortlived as suddenly the order vanished from the court hall as one of the counsel reportedly took it out.

When Ms. Justice Ruma Pal came to know that the order was missing even before the other judge had signed it, she called for the counsel. He explained that the order paper had gone out along with the case bundle, but the Judge refused to accept the explanation and told him that "the order is being recalled. The judgment is now reserved. Further orders on the matter would be passed in consultation with Justice Reddi."

Had the order not been recalled, Mr. Justice Reddi would have signed the judgment during the day. Ms. Justice Ruma Pal was so upset that she retired to her chambers and came back for the regular hearing after a few minutes.

`A mistake'

In the afternoon, counsel realising his folly gave in writing the circumstances under which the order was mistakenly taken out along with other case papers. He tendered an apology for the lapse. He denied that the order was taken out deliberately for photocopying. It was a bona fide mistake.

The Excise Department had made the demand on the basis that ITC had sold its cigarettes at a price higher than the maximum retail price (MRP) printed on the packets.

The Department had claimed that the margins of the wholesale and secondary dealers were so compressed by the ITC that the cigarettes had to be sold by the retailers at a price higher than the MRP.

The ITC challenged the demand before the Customs, Excise and Gold (Control) Appellate Tribunal, which gave minor reliefs.

Therefore, both the Department and the ITC preferred appeals before the Supreme Court.

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