The Lok Sabha has passed the Tribunals Reforms Bill, 2026, which aims to create a National Tribunals Commission responsible for managing appointments, performance reviews, and addressing complaints concerning members of 16 tribunals. The Bill was approved without any debate amidst opposition protests and was introduced by Union Minister of State for Law and Justice, Arjun Ram Meghwal.
According to Meghwal, the new legislation will not interfere with the jurisdiction already granted to tribunals under their parent statutes. The Bill replaces the Tribunals Reforms Act, 2021, some provisions of which were invalidated by the Supreme Court in the case of Madras Bar Association v. Union of India for infringing on the principles of separation of powers and judicial independence.
The Commission will be tasked with overseeing the selection process for tribunal chairpersons and members, monitoring tribunal operations, conducting inquiries into complaints, and maintaining a National Tribunals Data Grid for case-related information. The Commission will oversee key bodies, including the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT), Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT), Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT), National Green Tribunal (NGT), Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT), Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT), Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT), and the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT).
Headquartered in New Delhi, the Commission will consist of a chairperson, two judicial members, and two technical members. The chairperson can be a former Supreme Court judge or a former Chief Justice of a High Court, while judicial members must be former Chief Justices or judges of High Courts. Technical members should have at least 25 years of experience in relevant fields such as public administration, finance, law, accountancy, banking, management, or technology.
Appointments to the Commission will be made by the Central government, which must consult the Chief Justice of India for appointing the chairperson and judicial members. The tenure for the Chairperson and members is set for five years or until they reach the ages of 70 and 67, respectively, whichever comes first.
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For tribunal appointments, the Commission will form search-cum-selection committees featuring judicial and technical members from the Commission, a retired High Court judge or Chief Justice, a Union government secretary, and two subject experts, though the latter and the member secretary will not have voting rights. The selection committee is responsible for recommending one candidate per vacancy and maintaining a standby list of one additional name. The Central government is obligated to finalize the appointment within three months of receiving the recommendation.
The Commission is also tasked with investigating complaints against tribunal members, covering issues such as abuse of office, incompetence, inefficiency, conflict of interest, or engaging in paid assignments during their tenure. Preliminary inquiries will be conducted by the ministry or department overseeing the tribunal before escalating complaints to the Commission.
The Bill’s Statement of Objects and Reasons highlights the establishment of the Commission as a response to the Supreme Court’s directive for an independent body with professional expertise and transparent procedures for selecting and monitoring tribunal members. The Commission’s estimated annual expenditure is ₹27.14 crore, with ₹24.79 crore as recurring costs and ₹2.35 crore as non-recurring costs.
