ORDER

03.04.2024

Along with Appeal an application for Condonation of Delay (CoD) has been filed to condone admitted delay of 948 days in filing the Appeal. In the Application for CoD, it is pleaded that the impugned judgment / order was passed on 16.07.2021 and the present appellant Shri Lakwinder Singh @ Lakh was in jail and released on 12.12.2022 in FIR No. 140 dated 02.07.2018 U/s NDPS Act, 1985 registered at PS Sadar Patti, Tarn Taran and due to collection of documents it took time to file the appeal. In this process, the delay of 948 days’ delay has been occurred, which is neither intentional nor deliberate. Moreover, the petitioner is not beneficiary in any manner with this delay.

2. Heard, the Ld. counsel for the Appellant on the point of limitation and also gone through the appeal and the application for CoD. Over and above the pleadings stated in the preceding para, the Ld. Counsel appearing for the Appellant submitted that Section 5 of the Limitation Act is applicable and the Tribunal has power to condone the delay.

3. The present appeal has been placed before this Bench with aforesaid Diary Number. The impugned order has been passed on 16.07.2021 i.e. during covid period and that the Appellant has not mentioned any specific date of receipt of the copy of the impugned order, so the date of impugned order is taken as the date of receipt of the copy of the order. The appeal was to be filed within 45 days which expired on 31.08.2021. The statute further provides that the Tribunal may entertain an appeal after the said period of forty-five days, but not after sixty days, from the date aforesaid if it is satisfied that the appellant was prevented by sufficient cause from filing the appeal in time. The 60^th day expired on 15.09. 2021.

As stated above, the impugned order was passed during the covid period. The Hon’ble Supreme Court vide its order passed in suo- moto writ petition no. 3/2020 to condone delay in filing the appeal from 15.03.2020 to 28.02.2022 in view of the covid pandemic. Accordingly, the 45^th day is to be calculated from 1.03.2022 which falls on 14.04.2022 and 60^th day expired on 29. 04. 2022 and that the appeal is filed on 29.02.2024. So, there is a huge delay of 671 days.

4. Now the question arises, whether this Tribunal has competence to condone any delay in filing the appeal after 60 days from the date of receiving the copy of the impugned order.

5. The relevant provision which deals with the filing of the appeal as well as the limitation and competence of this Tribunal to condone the delay is detailed in Section 68-O (1) of NDPS Act, 1985. The same is reproduced below:

“(1) [Any officer referred to in sub- section (1) of section 68E or any person aggrieved by an order of the competent authority] made under section 68 F, section 68 I, sub- section (1) of section 68K or section 68L, may, within forty–five days from the date on which the order is served on him, prefer an appeal to the Appellate Tribunal :

PROVIDED that the Appellate Tribunal may entertain an appeal after the said period of forty-five days, but not after sixty days, from the date aforesaid if it is satisfied that the appellant was prevented by sufficient cause from filing the appeal in time.

6. It is necessary to bring on record some examples of similar provisions/substantially similar provisions in some other special Acts and decisions of Hon’ble Supreme Court and High Courts on the issue.

7. The Proviso to Section 12 (4) of Smugglers & Foreign Exchange Manipulators (Forfeiture of Property) Act, 1976 and S. 68(O)(1) of Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 are similar. The relevant provisions of both the Acts are re-produced below:

―SAFEM ACT, 1976

12(4) of SAFEMA,1976:- Any person aggrieved by an order of the competent authority made under section 7. Subsection (1) of section 9 or section 10, may, within forty five days from the date on which the order is served on him, prefer an appeal to the appellate Tribunal:

Provided that the Appel