Tribunals in India

Notes

Tribunals are quasi-judicial bodies set up to adjudicate specialised disputes quickly and with technical expertise, reducing the burden on regular courts. The 42nd Amendment (1976), on the Swaran Singh Committee's recommendation, added Part XIVA (Art. 323A and 323B).

Art. 323A: Parliament may set up administrative tribunals for recruitment and service conditions of public servants. Result: the Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985, and the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) (1985) with benches across the country, and State Administrative Tribunals.
Art. 323B: Parliament or State legislatures may set up tribunals for taxation, industrial and labour disputes, land reforms, foreign exchange, import and export, rent and tenancy, elections to legislatures and other matters.

Judicial position

L. Chandra Kumar v Union of India (1997): exclusion of the High Courts' writ jurisdiction (Art. 226/227) and the Supreme Court's jurisdiction under Art. 32 by Art. 323A(2)(d) and 323B(3)(d) was struck down. Tribunals are subject to judicial review by the High Court Division Bench; appeals go to the Supreme Court under Art. 136. Tribunals act as courts of first instance, and judicial review is a basic feature.

Major tribunals

National Green Tribunal (NGT, 2010): environmental disputes; principal bench in Delhi.
NCLT and NCLAT (Companies Act, 2013), Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT), Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT), TDSAT (telecom), Armed Forces Tribunal (2007), Debt Recovery Tribunals (DRT), Railway Claims Tribunal, GST Appellate Tribunal.

Reforms and concerns

The Tribunals Reforms Act, 2021 abolished several appellate tribunals and set common service conditions. In Madras Bar Association (2021) the Supreme Court struck down provisions on a minimum age of 50 years and four-year tenure as violating the independence of the judiciary.
Concerns: dependence on the parent ministry, vacancies, pendency, uneven tenures; a National Tribunals Commission has been proposed.

Key Points

Part XIVA: Art. 323A (administrative tribunals) and Art. 323B (other tribunals); 42nd Amendment.
L. Chandra Kumar (1997): tribunals are subject to High Court review.
CAT created under the Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985.
NGT (2010) handles environmental cases.
Tribunals Reforms Act, 2021 and Madras Bar Association (2021).

MCQs

Q1. Administrative tribunals are provided for in: (a) Art. 323A (b) Art. 323B (c) Art. 324 (d) Art. 312 Ans: (a).

Q2. In which case did the Supreme Court hold tribunals subject to High Court judicial review? (a) Kesavananda Bharati (b) L. Chandra Kumar v Union of India (c) Minerva Mills (d) Indira Sawhney Ans: (b). 1997.