(1) Any person objecting to an order passed by the Appellate Assistant Commissioner under sub-section (3) of section 47 or an order passed under the proviso to sub-section (4) of section 77 may, within a period of sixty days from the date on which the order was served on him in the manner prescribed, appeal against such order to the Appellate Tribunal :

Provided that the Appellate Tribunal may admit an appeal presented after the expiration of the said period of sixty days, but within a further period of sixty days, if it is satisfied that the appellant had sufficient cause for not presenting the appeal within the period of sixty days:

Provided further that no appeal filed by any person objecting to an order passed under sub-section (3) of section 47 shall be entertained unless it is accompanied by satisfactory proof of the payment of tax admitted by the appellant to be due or of such instalments thereof as might have become payable, as the case may be, and twenty-five per cent of difference of the tax as ordered by the Appellate Assistant Commissioner and the tax admitted by the appellant:

Provided also that the Appellate Tribunal may, if it thinks fit, for reasons to be recorded in writing and subject to furnishing of such security as the Appellate Tribunal may deem fit, admit an appeal against the order of the Appellate Assistant Commissioner with part payment or without any payment of tax as ordered by the Appellate Assistant Commissioner required under this sub-section with a view to mitigate undue hardship which is likely to be caused to the person if the payment of such amount is insisted on.

(2) The appeal shall be in the prescribed form and shall be verified in the prescribed manner and shall be accompanied by such fee not exceeding one hundred rupees as may be prescribed.

(3) In disposing of an appeal, the Appellate Tribunal may, after giving the appellant a reasonable opportunity of being heard,

(a) in the case of an order of assessment -

(i) confirm, reduce, enhance or annul the assessment or penalty or both; or

(ii) set aside the assessment and direct the assessing authority to make a fresh assessment after such further inquiry as may be directed; or

(iii) pass such other orders as it may think fit; and

(b) in the case of any other order, confirm, cancel or vary such order:

Provided that at the hearing of any appeal against an order of the Appellate Assistant Commissioner, the assessing authority shall have the right to be heard either in person or by a representative.

(4) Where as a result of the appeal any change becomes necessary in the order appealed against, the Appellate Tribunal may authorise the assessing authority to amend such order accordingly and on such amendment being made, any amount overpaid by the appellant shall be refunded to him without interest, or the further amount of tax, if any, due from him shall be collected in accordance with provisions of this Act, as the case may be.

(5) Notwithstanding that an appeal has been preferred under sub-section (1) the tax shall be paid in accordance with the order of assessment against which the appeal has been preferred:

Provided that the Appellate Tribunal may, in its discretion, give such directions as it thinks fit in regard to the payment of the tax before the disposal of the appeal, if the appellant furnishes sufficient security to its satisfaction, in such form and in such manner as may be prescribed:

Provided further that where an order of stay is made in any proceeding relating to an appeal filed under sub-section (1), the Appellate Tribunal shall dispose of the appeal within a period of ninety days from the date of such order:

Provided also that if such appeal is not disposed of within the period specified in the above proviso, the stay order shall, on the expiry of that period, stand vacated and no further stay shall be granted.

(6) (a) The appellant or the respondent may apply for review of any order passed by the Appellate Tribunal under sub-section (3) on the basis of the discovery of new and important facts which after the exercise of due diligence were not within his knowledge or could not be produced by him when the order was made:

Provided that no such application shall be preferred more than once in respect of the same order.

(b) The application for review shall be preferred in the prescribed manner and within one year from the date on which a copy of the order to which the application relates was served on the applicant in the manner prescribed and where the application is preferred by any party other than a departmental authority it shall be accompanied by such fee not exceeding one hundred rupees as may be prescribed.

(7) Except as provided in the rules made under this Act, the Appellate Tribunal shall not have power to award costs to either of the parties to the appeal or review.

(8) Every order passed by the Appellate Tribunal under the third proviso to sub-section (1), sub-section (3), proviso to sub-section (5) and sub-section (6) shall be communicated in the manner prescribed to the appellant, the respondent, the authority from whose order the appeal was preferred, the Commissioner if he is not such authority, and the Secretary.

(9) Every order passed by the Appellate Tribunal under sub-section (3) shall, subject to the provisions of sub-section (6) and section 51 be final.