MADHUBEN KESHAVLAL SHAH Vs. STATE OF GUJARAT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) As provided in S. 3 of the Act, the appeal is required to be preferred within a period of 30 days of the date on which the order is communicated on the same day i.e. on December 25, 1986, and therefore the limitation starts from the next day. It is true that as provided by priviso of S. 3, the appellate authority may entertain the appeal after the expiry of the said period of 30 days, provided the authority is satisfied that the appellant was prevented by substantial cause, from filing appeal in time it is obligatory for the appellant to satisfy the appellate authority of the sufficient cause which prevented her from filing the appeal within the prescribed period of limitation. Admittedly, the previous appeal was filed and that was allowed and therefore it cannot be said that the appellant was totally ignorant of the provisions for the appeal or procedure. Apart from that, the grounds for condoning the delay are not held to be convincing by the appellate authority and as such I have no reason to disagree as the said grounds arc also not convincing to me. The appellate authority has rightly observed that the appellant has failed to satisfy that she was so much engrossed in the medical practice that she could not even get time to instruct the advocate. Similarly, the grounds that the appellant was engaged in nursing her parents and that her elder sister and mother had met with an accident, were also not held to be convincing, and as such, they are also not convincing to me. It is also not stated that when her elder sister and mother had met with an accident and the injury was such that it was necessary for the appellant to constantly attend them and she could not get time even to instruct the advocate or to file the appeal. The reasons being unconvincing to the appellate authority as well as to me, I do not find any reason to interfere with the order passed by the appellate authority. As such, this court is not sitting in appeal against the order of the appellate authority and there is no error apparent on the face of the record. The result is that the petition fails and is dismissed.