Counsel v. Shri Kapil Dev

$~ * IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI 42. + ITA 146/2016 COMMISSIONER OF INCOME TAX: –DELHI VIII ..... Appellant Through: Mr Rahul Chaudhary, Senior Standing Counsel. versus SHRI KAPIL DEV ..... Respondent CORAM: JUSTICE S.MURALIDHAR JUSTICE VIBHU BAKHRU O R D E R% 14.03.2016 -CM No.5166/2016 (for condonation of delay in refiling the appeal) & ITA No. ITA 146/2016 1. There is an inordinate delay of 950 days in re-filing the appeal. 2. The Court finds that the standard excuse that the department is putting forth in all such applications for condonation of delay in re-filing the appeal is the change of Standing Counsel for the Department and the failure by the earlier counsel to inform the Department about the appeal lying in defect. This explanation does not impress the Court. It is not possible to accept that no one in the Department followed up on the filing of appeals and allowed a period of more than two and a half years to elapse before the appeal could be re-filed. The Department has a cell in the High Court which is under the ITA 146/2016 Page 1 of 2 supervision of a Deputy CIT. He ought to be keeping track of the filing of appeals and should be able to know if any appeal entrusted to the panel counsel for filing has not been listed even once before the Court for a long time. 3. The application bearing CM No.5166/2016 for condonation of the delay of 950 days in re-filing the appeal is dismissed. Accordingly, the appeal is dismissed. S.MURALIDHAR, J MARCH 14, 2016 MK VIBHU BAKHRU, J ITA 146/2016 Page 2 of 2