Tribunal Rationalisation

The government has merged several powerful administrative tribunals and assumed powers to appoint and remove their chiefs, triggering fears that the move will undermine the authority and independence of these quasi-judicial institutions.

In a bid to rationalise tribunals and bring in more uniformity in terms of service and efficiency, the Centre brought the axe down on eight tribunals, as part of its amendments to the Finance Bill previously in 2017.

CJI Suggestion

The top court had said all it wants is that “the tribunals work efficiently and independently”.
The court had said it is tentatively of the view that directions given by the apex court in its two verdicts of 1997 and 2010 for bringing all the tribunals of the country under one nodal agency should have been “implemented long back”.

What are tribunals?

  • Tribunals were added in the Constitution by Constitution (Forty-second Amendment) Act, 1976 as Part XIV-A, which has only two articles viz. 323-A and 323-B.
  • While article 323-A deals with Administrative Tribunals; article 323-B deals with tribunals for other matters.
  • The ‘tribunals’ are not courts of normal jurisdiction, but they have very specific and predefined work area.
Location: Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India

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