Thread by @barandbench

Supreme Court bench led by CJI NV Ramana to hear petitions challenging the constitutional validity of Tribunal Reforms Act 2021 and the case pertaining to mounting vacancies in various tribunals across India
#SupremeCourt #TribunalVacancies #TribunalReformsAct

In an affidavit filed by the Centre on Tuesday, it was submitted that no recommendations made by any of the SCSCs now remain pending with the government.

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Attorney General for India KK Venugopal to address the bench on behalf of Central government
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CJI to AG Venugopal: There is one matter which Mr Datar has filed. In advance we are telling you that you have to appear. It says that 10 days before his retirement Mr Cheema, NCLAT chairman, hurriedly Mr Venugopal has been appointed. I don't know how it is happened

AG Venugopal: We will circulate a note also.

AG: In today's matter of challenge by MBA to Tribunal reforms act 2021, we can file a counter affidavit and this case can be taken up on next Monday. The other matter is also the same challenge and we can file a counter on it

CJI: These two matters (one by Madras Bar Association and Jairam Ramesh plea challenging Tribunal Reforms Act, 2021) can be heard next Monday

Sr Adv Arvind Datar: all appointments which have been made now, there is a disturbing trend which needs to end

Datar: for the new appointments, now it is for 4 years or until further orders. So their appointments can be cancelled anytime.

CJI: SCSC recommended 9 judicial members and 10 technical members for NCLAT. The appointment letter issued that as if members were cherry picked and some were kept on waiting. we cannot ignore selected candidates and go to waitlist. what type of selection and appointment is this?

CJI: The same thing has happened with ITAT members

Datar: 42 had been appointed for ITAT and 13 were appointed. On what basis have they been selected?

Justice Chandrachud: Mr AG the provision you are referring to in the 2021 act is the same one which was struck down by the #SupremeCourt

AG: 'preferably within 3 months' has been struck down but appointing from the recommendations has not been struck down.

Justice L Nageswara Rao: We had struck down that for one post two names cannot be there and names have to be cleared within 3 months. this is section 3(7) which was struck down.

AG: govt has the power not to accept the recommendations made

CJI: you cannot say Mr Attorney General that we cannot accept

AG: it was held in the UPSC case that centre can decide not to accept. we have acted as per the judgment. we have gone to wait list after exhausting the main list. thus no recommendations are pending for 6 tribunals

Justice L Nageswara Rao: we told SG about recommendations made by SCSC. We had recommended names as per law that was 2 names for one vacancy and till now no appointments. how long can this continue even after a year?

AG: I have instructions from the government that we are ready to reconsider

Justice Rao: then what is the sanctity of the recommendations

CJI: we are very much unhappy about how recommendations are being acted upon. We interviewed 530 candidates for judicial members and 400 plus for technical in NCLAT. out of this cleared is 8 judicial members and same way technical members. we traveled across the country

CJI: during COVID your govt requested us to conduct interviews and we wasted so much time during COVID. Now 5 are selected in judicial members and they are already 64 and they get tenure of 65 years. so they get one year for service?

AG: No it is 67 years..

CJI: There is too much inconsistency. This is not done

Datar: NCLT is outside tribunal act and under parent act so tenure is already one year

AG: we are ready to reconsider all non-acceptance list

CJI: same thing happened with ITAT

CJI: TDSAT too the same thing happened in which Justice Rao made recommendations.

Justice Chandrachud: In NCDRC too in which we made recommendations the list was truncated and appointments were made

Justice Rao: In TDSAT only chairman is working and there are no members . the secretary called me.

AG: We made the appointment on September 11...

Justice Rao: this is the problem,.. with delay of 1 to 1.5 years bureaucrats are not willing to wait and be adjusted somewhere else

AG: please have it after a week, we will reconsider the non acceptance list apart from candidates who have corruption charges.

Sr Adv Krishnan Venugopal: Pleas issue notice in the comtempt petition since the names have been cherry picked

CJI: so far as appointment is concerned we will hold our hands for one more week. Regarding pleas challenging tribunal reforms act 2021, we issue notice in MBA

CJI: regarding the jurisdiction issue (state bar council of Madhya Pradesh) SG had made some assurances, what happened to that?

AG: This is a case where additional charge has been given to DRT lucknow to take charge of Jabalpur bench. March 2021 judgment says DRT outside state can't take responsibility. We will file counter

Justice Chandrachud: How does a litigant engage a new lawyer from Jabalpur to lucknow? Kerala HC had quashed the transfer of jurisdiction outside state. this has national ramification. 6 months have passed after this judgment. it was not challenged

Justice Rao: you cant deny access to justice

CJI Ramana: this is a country wide problem and not only Jabalpur

AG: we will file a counter

CJI: Counter affidavit is not the solution

Justice Rao: you had agreed that National Tribunal Commission will be constituted and till then a separate wing will be constituted in finance ministry. This we recorded in the judgment Mr AG. What happened to the commission??

CJI: we dont want to trouble you more than this. National tribunals point was stated by this court too. we cant say anything more than this

Justice Chandrachud: In the DRT matter if there is a bench of NCLT or TDSAT in jabalpur, then a judicial member can be given charge for the DRT case.

Justice Chandrachud: litigants are in distress ! if a bank issues notice under Section 13(2) of SARFARESI, seizure is under 13(4) then there is no recourse to debtor! no remedy

Adv Siddharth Gupta: There is a bench of Armed forces tribunal is in Madhya Pradesh. It is lying vacant because it is not filled up. The DRT cases can be taken up there too. Lucknow bench has said jabalpur cases will be taken up only when physical files are filed. its crippled

CJI: Both states of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, there is no bench for DRT too.. so they went to West Bengal. Now they have to go to Lucknow since members are not there in Bengal too.

We can have it after two weeks butyou make the appointments by then

Datar: please dont have it "until further orders" for an appointment.

AG: It should have been until further orders from the Supreme Court, that should have been included

CJI: Mr AG if you can do something without inviting orders from the court then we are happy.

Justice Rao: we had a case from Securities Appellate Tribunal where members deferred from each other. SEBI challenged the verdict since it has to go to the third member. Please see that technical members are appointed at least. this is a practical problem..

Advocate Gupta: Here there are 2 problems, no technical members in SAT

CJI: appointment of members is the only solution. Otherwise we will pass orders

AG: For SAT, SCSC has not recommended any persons till now. we have nominated two secretaries.

CJI: I have recieved letters regarding appointment of chairman to NCLT and NCLAT. We said okay then they said rules have to framed as per new act. we cannot go to the departments to get the work done

AG: We can get two members to be appointed for SAT temporarily so that it functions

CJI: Ask a responsible officer to approach us and we will clear in no time. we want resolution.

CJI: notice in Madras Bar Association plea and tag along with Jairam Ramesh's plea. File counter in two weeks, submit status of appointments after two weeks, and if someone not appointed then furnish reasons for not appointing

#supremecourt #tribunalvacancies