A Division Bench of the Kerala High Court comprising Justice Dr. Muhamed Mustaq and Justice Dr. Kauser Edappagath has ordered the appointment of Chairman of the Kerala Administrative Tribunal.
“An expeditious decision on the recommendation of appointment of the Chairman is required. It is appropriate that the decision is taken on the recommendation by the competing authority within a period of three weeks.”
Background of the Case
The petition was filed by the Advocates Association of Kerala Administrative Tribunal Ernakulam along with a lawyer practicing before the High Court because the Chairman of the Tribunal, Mr. Justice T. R. Ramachandran Nair completed his tenure on 15/09/2020 and another administrative member Shri Somasundaran retired on 26/05/2021. The Petitioner showed his concern about the activities of KAT coming to a halt due to the delay in appointing the chairperson. A proposal for the appointment of the Chairman was forwarded by the State Government on 27/07/2020.
Reasoning and Decision of the Court
The Court looked into the answer given by the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances, and Pensions (Department of Personnel and Training) to a query raised by the Honourable Member of Parliament. The proposal was referred to Honourable Chief justice of India for consultation in terms of Section 6(3) of the Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985, and a response received from the Honourable Chief Justice of India on 05/02/2021.
The Learned Additional Solicitor General informed the Court that the cabinet appointment committee is the final authority to decide on the recommendation. The Court also expressed that the entire functioning of the Kerala Administrative Tribunal would come to a halt as the two Judicial Members would also retire in the month of July 2021.
Therefore, the Court posted the matter after three weeks and directed the Government to appoint the Chairman of the Tribunal expeditiously and any selection process, pursuant to the notification, for the selection of administrative members, will be subject to the outcome of this writ petition.
Case Details
Case: - W.P.(C).No.10706/2021
Judge: Justice Dr. Muhamed Mustaq and Justice Dr. Kauser Edappagath
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