The Finance Act, 2017 provided for merger of eight autonomous tribunals with other tribunals. The Act also gave the government the power to appoint and remove the members in another 17 such bodies.
Part XVI of the Finance Act, 2017 provided amendments to certain Acts to provide for merger of tribunals and other authorities and conditions of service of chairpersons, members, etc.
Section 184 of the Act permits the central government to decide the terms of service including appointments, term of office, salaries and allowances, and removal of tribunal members through rules. The present rules have been notified by the Central Government in exercise of the powers conferred on them under this section.
The move was largely criticized by experts since it would affect the independence of Tribunals. Tribunals perform a judicial function, while the government is part of the executive. There may be instances where the government is a party to a dispute before a tribunal like the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) or the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT). There would be conflict of interest if the government were to be a litigant before the tribunal as well as have the power to determine appointment or reappointment of its members. By allowing the central government to frame rules to decide each of these aspects, the independence of tribunals could be affected.
Read the full text of the Notification below.
