Taking note of the vacancies in the Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT), the Supreme Court on Monday sought responses from the Centre and other authorities on a plea requesting that the selection process be completed and the vacant posts filled within a fixed timeline.
Agreeing to hear the matter, a bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi also asked Attorney General R. Venkataramani to assist the court in addressing the issue.
The bench directed counsel appearing for the petitioner—the Armed Forces Tribunal Bar Association (Regional Bench)—to provide a copy of the petition to the office of the Attorney General. It then scheduled the matter for hearing after two weeks.
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During the proceedings, the petitioner’s counsel highlighted the seriousness of the situation, stating that out of the 11 benches of the AFT only three would remain functional by the end of the year if the existing vacancies were not filled promptly.
The plea seeks a direction to the Centre to expedite the selection process and fill all vacant positions in the tribunal within a stipulated time frame, in compliance with Section 5 of the Armed Forces Tribunal Act, 2007. Section 5 of the Act outlines the composition of the tribunal and its various benches.
In addition, the petition has requested that the current judicial and administrative members of the tribunal be allowed to continue in office—subject to their consent—until the required appointments are made and the vacancies are duly filled.
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