The Commissioner cannot revise orders passed by an authority to whom he has delegated his function under the Act.

JUDGMENT

K. P. MOHAPATRA, J. - The appellant has challenged the impugned order dated 7th January, 1980 (annexure 9) passed by the Commissioner of Sales Tax, Orissa, respondent No. 2 ("Commissioner" for short) in exercise of his suo motu power of revision conferred under section 23(4)(a) of the Orissa Sales Tax Act read with rule 80 of the Orissa Sales Tax Rules (hereinafter referred to as the "Act" and the "Rules") by which orders passed by the Special Additional Commissioner of Sales Tax, Orissa, on 24th May, 1978 (annexure 6 series) allowing interest to the appellant under section 14-C were set aside.

2. Facts which are not in dispute are stated below. The appellant, Messrs Orient Paper Mills, a manufacturer of paper having its factory premises at Brajarajnagar, is a registered dealer under the Act and was assessed by the Sales Tax Officer, Jharsuguda (for short "S.T.O.") for the assessment years 1967-68, 1970-71 and 1971-72. On 2nd July, 1974 the Additional Sales Tax Tribunal in second appeal directed refund of tax for the year 1967-68. On 30th December, 1974 the appellant filed a refund application. On 31st January, 1975 the Assistant Commissioner of Sales Tax, Sambalpur Range, in appeal directed refund of sales tax for assessment years 1970-71 and 1971-72. On 4th April, 1975 the appellant filed refund applications. The refund applications referred to above were not promptly attended to by the S.T.O., but on 15th March, 1977 he intimated the appellant by letters (annexure 1 series) that the applications were defective in certain particulars requiring rectification. On 17th March, 1977 the appellant filed a memo rectifying the defects. Thereafter on 19th March, 1977 the S.T.O. passed orders on the refund applications and made adjustments against outstanding sales tax demand payable by the appellant for the assessment years 1973-74, 1974-75 and 1975-76.

3. On 30th March, 1977 the appellant filed three applications (annexure 2 series) before the S.T.O. claiming interest on the amounts refunded/adjusted under section 14-C of the Act. After giving the appellant an opportunity of showing cause (annexures 3 and 4) the S.T.O. by orders dated 16th January, 1978 (annexure 5 series) rejected the applications and refused to pay interest. Against the orders of rejection, the appellant preferred revisions before the Commissioner which came to be disposed of by the Special Additional Commissioner of Sales Tax, who having observed that the S.T.O. had committed long and avoidable delay in disposal of the refund applications, directed payment of interest on the amounts sought to be refunded and adjusted and thus allowed the appellant's revision applications (annexure 6 series). The Commissioner, in exercise of his suo motu power of revision, registered a case to revise the orders (annexure 6 series) passed by the Special Additional Commissioner of Sales Tax, Orissa and after hearing the appellant set aside the orders taking the view that defective applications for refund were not applications according to law and could have been immediately rejected as such. They became applications according to law only after the defects were removed and as the S.T.O. had directed refund/adjustment within a couple of days of rectification of defects by the appellant, payment of interest was unwarranted. This order of the Commissioner had been impugned in this appeal.

4. Mr. B. K. Mohanty, learned counsel appearing for the appellant, contended that the Special Additional Commissioner disposed of the revision applications in exercise of powers delegated to him by the Commissioner under section 17 of the Act. Therefore, the Commissioner had no further jurisdiction to revise on his own motion the orders passed by the Special Additional Commissioner. Therefore, he acted wholly without jurisdiction in passing the impugned order. He further urged that according to the provisions of section 14-C of the Act, the petitioner was entitled to interest which was rightly