The Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) will celebrate its 40 years of success on March 18, 2023. The inaugural function will have Hon’ble Mr. Justice Dinesh Maheshwari, Judge, Supreme Court of India, as Chief Guest and Hon’ble Mr. Justice Satish Chandra Sharma, Chief Justice of Delhi High Court, as the Guest of Honour.
Honourable Guests and Souvenir Release:
The inaugural function will also have Justice Yashwant Varma, Judge, Delhi High Court; Shri Sanjay Malhotra, Secretary, Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance; and, Shri Vivek Johri, Chairman, Central Board for Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC), along with senior officials of the Tribunal. The commemoration will also see the release of a souvenir.
Working Sessions and Keynote Speakers:
Justice Dilip Gupta, President, CESTAT, will lead the commemoration with participation from members of Delhi Principal Bench, besides seven other Regional Benches of CESTAT and senior officials of the Tribunal. Two working sessions will follow the inaugural function.
The first session will discuss the ‘Use of Technology in Tribunals for Speedy Delivery of Justice’ with Hon’ble Mr. Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva, Judge, Delhi High Court, as the presiding officer. The second session will be on ‘Experiments of Tribunals – Triumphs and Tribulations’ with Hon’ble Mr. Justice Pankaj Mittal, Judge, Supreme Court of India, as the presiding officer. Justice Sunita Agarwal, Judge, Allahabad High Court, will also address the gathering.
About CESTAT:
The Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal was constituted in the year 1982 on October 11 under Article 323B of the Constitution of India and Section 129 of the Customs Act, 1962. The Tribunal Reforms Act, 2021, has now been enacted to further amend certain Acts, including the Customs Act, 1962.
Regional Benches and Working During Pandemic:
The Principal Bench of the Tribunal is at Delhi, and eight Regional Benches of the Tribunal, including Bangalore, Ahemdabad, Allahabad, Chandigarh, and Hyderabad, were constituted. During the COVID pandemic period, the Tribunal conducted virtual hearings at the Principal Bench as well as the 8 Regional Benches. Anti-Dumping matters and matters before the Larger Benches of the Tribunal were also decided during this period.
Improvements in Working:
Over the past four years, the Tribunal has taken numerous steps to improve its functioning, including uploading all orders passed by the Tribunal on its website without any delay. This has resulted in providing timely information about the proceedings to the parties, and a dynamic display board is also available in the courtrooms and other prominent places in the Tribunal.