This Blog is written By Mr. Nishant Tiwari Student of National University of Study and Research in Law, Ranchi.
I. Understanding the Concept of Administrative
Tribunals in India-
The concept of tribalization arose in India with
the establishment of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal before the country's independence.
After independence, the need was felt to resolve administrative disputes with
flexibility and speed. The main objective was to provide specialized and speedy
justice to the people. After the drafting of the Indian Constitution, The constitution guaranteed various rights for the well-being of people. People
have the right to fast and specialized quality trials that the prevailing
judicial system cannot deliver due to the overload of cases and appeals,
technicalities in the procedure, etc. Therefore, the need for the creation of
administrative courts cannot be ignored.
The 42nd Amendment to the Constitution introduced
Part XIV-A that included Articles 323A
and 323B
that provide for the establishment of courts that deal with administrative and
other matters. Under these provisions of the Constitution, courts must be
organized and established in such a way that they do not violate the integrity
of the judicial system established in the Constitution, which constitutes the basic structure of the Constitution. The introduction of articles 323A and 323B
was made with the main objective of excluding the jurisdiction of the High
Courts under articles 226
and 227,
except for the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court under article 136
and to create an alternative institutional mechanism effective or authority for
a specific judicial court cases.
The purpose of establishing courts to the exclusion
of the jurisdiction of the High Courts was made to reduce pendency and lessen
the burden of cases. Therefore, the courts are organized as part of the civil
and criminal court system under the supremacy of the Supreme Court of India.
II.
Categories of Administrative Tribunals in India-
There are different categories of administrative tribunals in
India. They are-
A.
Administrative Tribunals for service
matter [Article 323A]:
Article
323A of the Constitution of India, 1950 deals with the establishment of
administrative tribunals by law dictated by Parliament for the adjudication of
disputes and complaints related to the recruitment and conditions of service of
Central Government and State Government officials. It includes employees of any
local or other authority within the territory of India or under the control of
the Government of India or of a corporation owned or controlled by the
Government. The establishment of such tribunals must be at the central and
state-level separately for each state or for two or more states. The law must
incorporate the provisions for jurisdiction, power, and authority to be
exercised by the courts; the procedure to be followed by the courts; the
exclusion of the jurisdiction of all other courts except the Supreme Court of
India.
B.
Tribunals for other matters [Article
323B]:
Article
323-B of the Constitution of India, 1950 empowers the Parliament and the State
Legislature to establish tribunals for the adjudication of any dispute or
complaint regarding the matters specified in clause (2) of Article 323B. Some
of the matters given under clause (2) are a lien, evaluation, collection and
application of any tax; currency exchange and export; industrial and labor
disputes; food production, acquisition, supply and distribution; income and its
regulation and control and tenure issues, etc. Said law must define the
jurisdiction, the powers of said courts and establish the procedure to be
followed. In the historical case of L.
Chandra Kumar v. Union of India,
the court reached several conclusions regarding the jurisdictional powers of
the court constituted under articles 323A and 323B of the Constitution.
C. The Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985:
In
compliance with the provisions of article 323A of the Constitution, the
Parliament approved the Administrative Tribunal Act of 1985, which provides for
all matters included in clause (1) of Article 323-A. Pursuant to this Act,
there must be a Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) at the center and a
state-wide. Also, there must be State Administrative Tribunal (SAT) for each
state. The tribunals are competent to declare the constitutionality of the
relevant laws and statutes.
III.
Objectives for the establishment of Administrative Tribunals-
The main purpose of the introduction of this law
was to alleviate congestion in the courts or to reduce the burden of cases in
the courts and to provide a faster disposition of disputes related to
service-related matters. In the case of Union
of India v. R. Gandhi, President, Madras Bar Association,
the constitutionality of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) and National
Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) was challenged on the grounds that the Parliament
has no authority to grant judicial functions in any court that traditionally
have as they have been carried out by the High Courts for so long. The transfer
of the entire jurisdiction of the company from the High Court to the tribunal
violates the doctrine of the rule of law, the separation of powers and the
independence of the judiciary. The various provisions of Part 1-B and 1-C of
the Companies Act are defective and unconstitutional, violating the
constitutional principles of the Rule of Law, the separation of powers and the
independence of the judiciary.
The court upheld the constitutionality of NCLT and
NCLAT in the exercise of the powers and jurisdiction of the High Court subject
to the necessary changes to be made in the Companies Act of 1956, as amended in
2002, through appropriate amendments. The court recognized and confirmed the constitutional power of Parliament to establish tribunals for the resolution of
disputes. Parliament's legislative competence to provide for the creation of
courts and tribunals date back to articles 245, 246 and 247 of the
Constitution of India, 1950 read with various entries in the Union List and the
Concurrent List which is in no way affected or controlled by Article 323A or
323B of the Constitution.
The court further added that the constitution of
tribunals and the transfer of judicial powers themselves cannot be presumed to
violate the rule of law, the separation of powers and the independence of the
judiciary because the Constitution allows both courts and tribunals to exercise
judicial powers. What matters most is whether the constituted courts respect
and uphold the principles of separation of powers, rule of law and independence
of the judiciary. The NCLT and NCLAT constitution must be subject to judicial
review in order for the court in the exercise of judicial review to investigate
the matter to verify whether these principles are compromised by such
tribalization and may interfere to preserve them.
IV.
Conclusion-
Today,
the executive also performs legislative and quasi-judicial duties.
Administrative tribunals are formed to preside over quasi-judicial matters
rather than ordinary judicial courts. The constitution has taken note of the
state of the tribunals and the power to judge is received from a statue. The
reasons for the establishment of tribunals vary from their speed, profitability , and informality when done in accordance with justice.
It
can be concluded that in the current scenario, the administration has become an
important part of the government and of the lives of citizens. Due to this
growing role, it is important to establish a competent authority for the
redress of people's complaints and the resolution of disputes. Hence, the
concept of administrative tribunals emerged and is dynamically flourishing in
India with certain flaws and strengths.
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