Tribunals

The original Constitution had no provisions for tribunals. The 42nd Constitutional Amendment Act of 1976 inserted Part XIV-A, consisting of only two articles:

• Article 323-A: Administrative Tribunals
• Article 323-B: Tribunals for Other Matters

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Article 323-A authorises Parliament to establish administrative tribunals for adjudicating disputes relating to recruitment and service conditions of persons appointed to public services of the Centre, states, local bodies, public corporations, and other public authorities.

The rationale was to move service-matter adjudication out of civil courts and High Courts into specialised, faster, and cheaper tribunals.

In pursuance of Article 323-A, Parliament enacted the Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985, authorising the Centre to establish:

1. One Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT)
2. State Administrative Tribunals (SATs)

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Establishment and Structure

• Set up in 1985 with principal bench at Delhi
• Presently has 17 regular benches: 15 at principal seats of High Courts; 2 at Jaipur and Lucknow
• Additional circuit sittings held at other HC seats

Jurisdiction

• Exercises original jurisdiction (not appellate) over service matters
• Covers: All-India Services, Central civil services, civil posts under Centre, civilian employees of defence services
• Excluded: Defence force members, SC officers and servants, secretarial staff of Parliament

Composition

• Multi-member body: Chairman + Members
• After 2006 amendment to the Administrative Tribunals Act, members have been given the status of High Court judges
• Present sanctioned strength: 1 Chairman + 65 Members
• Drawn from both judicial and administrative streams; appointed by the President
• Tenure: 5 years or age of 65 (Chairman) / 62 (Members), whichever is earlier
• Appointments made on recommendation of a high-powered selection committee chaired by a sitting SC judge (nominated by CJI), with Cabinet's Appointments Committee (ACC) approval

Procedure

• Not bound by Code of Civil Procedure, 1908
• Guided by principles of natural justice
• Application fee: nominal ₹50
• Applicant may appear in person or through a lawyer

Appellate Route — Chandra Kumar Case (1997)

• Originally, CAT orders were appealable only to the Supreme Court, not to High Courts.
• In L. Chandra Kumar v. Union of India (1997), the Supreme Court declared this restriction unconstitutional, holding that judicial review is part of the basic structure of the Constitution.
• After this ruling: CAT orders must be appealed before the Division Bench of the concerned High Court first; only then can the Supreme Court be approached.

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• The 1985 Act empowers the Centre to establish SATs on specific request of the concerned state government
• States with SATs (as of 2016): Andhra Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh, Odisha, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Kerala
• MP, Tamil Nadu, and HP SATs have since been abolished (though HP later re-established its SAT; Tamil Nadu also sought re-establishment)
• Kerala SAT operational from 26 August 2010
• SAT Chairman and Members appointed by the President after consulting the Governor

Joint Administrative Tribunal (JAT)

• Can be set up for two or more states
• Exercises all jurisdiction of the SATs of the concerned states
• JAT Chairman and Members also appointed by the President after consulting the Governors of the concerned states

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Under Article 323-B, Parliament and state legislatures may establish tribunals for disputes relating to:

• Taxation
• Foreign exchange, import and export
• Industrial and labour matters
• Land reforms
• Ceiling on urban property
• Elections to Parliament and state legislatures
• Food stuffs
• Rent and tenancy rights (added by the 75th Amendment Act, 1993)

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The Supreme Court declared provisions in both Article 323-A and Article 323-B that excluded High Court and Supreme Court jurisdiction as unconstitutional. Judicial review being part of the basic structure cannot be ousted. Hence, orders of all tribunals under both articles are now subject to High Court and Supreme Court oversight.

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• Part XIV-A was added by the 42nd Amendment, 1976 — not the original Constitution.
• CAT was established under the Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985, not directly by the Constitution.
• CAT has 17 regular benches; principal bench at Delhi.
• The Chandra Kumar (1997) ruling is the most important judicial development on tribunals — know its holding thoroughly.
• Difference between 323-A and 323-B in terms of who can create and hierarchy is a classic UPSC trap.
• SATs are established by the Centre on state request — not directly by the states themselves.