Congress leader Ramesh asks SC to declare Tribunal Act unconstitutional

He claimed the provisions by fixing the tenure of persons appointed to tribunals to four years abrogated the complementary principles of separation of powers

Congress MP Jairam Ramesh on Monday filed a petition in the Supreme Court against the Tribunals Reforms Act, 2021, saying it abrogated the principle of judicial independence in a deliberate attempt to override the judgement of the top court.

He asked the court to declare the Act, which was passed by both the Houses of Parliament and had received the Presidential assent on August 13, as unconstitutional and ultra vires of Articles 14, 21 and 50 of the Constitution.

The statute was enacted with the objective, “to abolish certain tribunals and authorities and to provide a mechanism for filing appeal directly to the commercial court or the High Court” and also “reduce the burden on public exchequer”.

"The Act contains various provisions that are identical in nature to those in the Tribunals ordinance that were set aside by this court in the case of Madras Bar Association-IV-2021," his plea said.

In his plea, the former Union Minister claimed the provisions by fixing the tenure of persons appointed to tribunals to four years, and mandating the recommendation of two names for selection to a post, abrogated the complementary principles of separation of powers and judicial independence that are foundational to the judicial branch.

By enforcing a bar on appointing persons below 50 years of age reduced the effectiveness of tribunals by both stifling talent and fomenting vacancies. This flies against various judgements of this court is blatantly discriminatory under Article 14 of the Constitution, the plea said.

The government's failure to fix allowances and HRA and make the three-month appointment timeline mandatory also violated the directions of this court and thwarted the judicial independence of Tribunals and its separation from the executive, it claimed.

"The repeated failure of the government to comply with the directions of this court, undermine the rule of law and the equal protection of laws that are fundamental guarantees under Article 14 and 21 of the Constitution," it contended.

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