The Chief Justice of India remarked that the Central Government hasn’t honored its verdict in the Madras Bar Association case by passing the Tribunals Reforms Act.

LEARNING FROM HOME/ WITHOUT CLASSES/ BASICS

Administrative Tribunals are the administrative authorities to whom the judicial powers are delegated and holds quasi-judicial features. They are constituted by the state and are invested with judicial as distinguished from administrative or executive functions. The Tribunals only have the power to try cases which are specially conferred upon them through some statute. Decisions of such tribunals are judicial rather than administrative.

The constitutional (42nd amendment) Act, 1976, inserted Article 323-A and 323-B, by which parliament has been authorized to constitute administrative tribunals for settlement of disputes and adjudication of matters specified therein.

Under Article 323 B, the Parliament and the state legislatures are authorized to provide for the establishment of tribunals for the adjudication of disputes relating to the following matters:

• Taxation
• Foreign exchange, import and export
• Industrial and labour
• Land reforms
• Ceiling on urban property
• Elections to Parliament and state legislatures
• Food stuff
• Rent and tenancy rights

Article 136 of the constitution empowers the Supreme Court to grant special leave to appeal from any judgment, decree, order, determination, sentence or order passed or made by any tribunal in India.

Article 227 enables every High Court to exercise power of superintendence over all tribunals throughout the territories over which it exercises jurisdiction.

Article 262: The Indian Constitution provides a role for the Central government in adjudicating conflicts surrounding inter-state rivers that arise among the state/regional governments.

SUGGESTIONS

The pendency of cases in some of the Tribunals is suggestive of the fact that the object of setting up Tribunals is not achieved.

In case of transfer of jurisdiction of High Court to a Tribunal, the members of the newly constituted Tribunal should possess the qualifications akin to the judges of the High Court.

There shall be uniformity in the appointment, tenure and service conditions for the Chairman, Vice-Chairman and Members appointed in the Tribunals.

While making the appointments to the Tribunal, independence shall be maintained.

Vacancy arising in the Tribunal should be filled up as early as possible by initiating the procedure well in time.

The Tribunals must have benches in different parts of the country so that people of every geographical area may have easy Access to Justice.

In order to ensure uniformity in all the affairs of the Tribunals, the Central Government may consider bestowing the function of monitoring the working of the Tribunals to a single nodal agency.