If Advocate is not Present, Appeal will be dismissed - Revenue Departments warned by HC
IN a recent case in the Bombay High Court, the Bench found that matters were adjourned because the Counsel did not have papers or were not ready with the case. The High Court affirmed: Such state of affairs will not be tolerated hereafter . The High Court directed:-
1. In the event, the Counsel engaged by the Department is absent without a justifiable or reasonable cause, we will invariably impose costs and to be paid by the Counsel personally.
2. Equally, we would proceed in his absence. In the event, the Appellant or his Advocate is absent; we will proceed to dismiss the Appeal for non prosecution. Thereafter, no application for restoration of the Appeal will be considered unless the Appellant makes out a sufficient cause for absence.
3. We would also expect the Department and equally the Excise, Customs, Income Tax, all of which are stated to have engaged separate Advocates,to inform and caution their Advocates that their absence would result in either this Court proceeding ex-parte or Appeals of the Department being dismissed for non prosecution.
4. This Court will not hereafter countenance that the matters are adjourned and not heard due to absence of the Advocates.
5. The Department is equally responsible to the Court and must ensure the presence of their Advocates.
6. In the event only one Advocate is being briefed, the Department may consider handing over and entrusting the paper to an additional Advocate so as not to cause inconvenience to this Court.
7. The disobedience of this order or inconvenience to Court, would result in the Joint Secretary, Department of Judiciary, Government of India, so also, the Secretary Department of Law & Judiciary, Government of India, remaining present in the Court.