Uday Sinha, J.

1. These three applications have been heard together, as the parties are common and a common question of law falls for consideration. The petitioner has prayed for quashing annexure-7 in each of the three applications. By annexure-7, the Bihar Commercial Taxes Tribunal reviewed and recalled its orders dated 2nd September, 1969, and 10th December, 1971. The applications arise in the circumstances hereinafter stated.

2. The petitioner is an incorporated company in the State with its registered office at Ranchi. The three applications relate to the assessment of the firm under the Bihar Sales Tax Act for the assessment years 1962-63, 1963-64 and 1964-65. Adverse assessment orders having been passed against the petitioner, appeals were filed which proved futile. The petitioner thereafter moved the Commercial Taxes Tribunal in revision by three applications relating to the three assessment years. The revisions were dismissed by the Tribunal by judgment dated 6th May, 1969. The law enjoins filing of certified copy of the order passed by the Tribunal in revision along with the petition for reference under Sec.33 (1) of the Bihar Sales Tax Act, 1959. The petitioner, therefore, applied for grant of certified copy for filing an application before the Commercial Taxes Tribunal for review (sic) under Sec.33 (1) of the Bihar Sales Taxact, 1959. Copy was granted to the petitioner on 23rd August, 1969. The application under Sec.33 (1) was thereafter filed on 27th August,.1969. The order sheet of the Tribunal shows that the Tribunal came to the conclusion that the application for reference had been filed in time, after excluding the time taken in the grant of certified copy of the order complained against. The same order shows that the application was ordered to be listed for admission as well as hearing on merit on 21st February, 1970. Notices were issued to both the parties. It appears that the application for reference was finally heard on 26th November, 1971. On that day the counsel for the department not only challenged his prayer for making a reference on merit, but also contended that the application under Sec.33 (1) had been filed beyond time and, therefore, it was fit to be dismissed. The time allowed by Sec.33 (1) of the Sales Tax Act for filing an application for reference is ninety days. It is not in controversy that rightly or wrongly it has been long-standing settled practice of the Sales Tax Tribunal to exclude the time taken in obtaining certified copy of the impugned order in the matter of computation of limitation in respect of reference applications. The Tribunal after hearing the parties recorded order No.13 on 10th December, 1971. An English rendering of the order of that date would read as follows: decision has been taken to make a reference to the High Court. Commissioner, Sales Tax, may be requested to make available the originals and the documents mentioned below.

3. Long after recording the above order, the Tribunal by order dated 29th March, 1972, modified its orders dated 2nd September, 1969, and 10th December, 1971, and held that the reference applications will not be entertained on the ground of their being barred by limitation. The Tribunal specifically stated in paragraph 6 that the department has sufficient reason to request the Tribunal to review its order dated 2nd September, 1969, and the Tribunal observed that "which we hereby do". In paragraph 8, the Tribunal observed that "as it is not possible to state a case to the High Court in view of the applications for reference being barred by limitation, that order is also recalled". The petitioner, being aggrieved by the order of the Tribunal dated 29th March, 1972 (annexure-7), has moved this Court for quashing.

4. The submissions urged on behalf of the petitioner are firstly that the Tribunal committed gross error of law in taking the view that the petitioner was not entitled to exclusion of time taken in obtaining the certified copy of