AFT’s Benches on collision course

The case pertains to Col M S Yadav of the JAG branch and is related to a case of promotion and posting. Even as the case was being heard by the Guwahati Bench, the AFT chairperson passed an administrative order on January 21 to transfer it to Delhi. While this was under the provisions of the Act, what has miffed the Guwahati Bench is that the Principal Bench has also passed a stay order on the case.

“The matter of transfer is an administrative job and this power is allowed to be exercised by the chairperson alone sitting singly. The scheme of the Act does not permit passing any judicial order interim or otherwise including an order of stay by the chairperson sitting singly,” an order passed by Justice H N Sharma and Commodore Mohan Phadke on January 22 reads.

While showing its displeasure with the stay order, the Guwahati Bench has said it considers it “proper not to proceed” with the case in view of the “interim stay order”. Legal experts feel the case has brought out a strong disagreement between the Benches of the AFT, raising a question of judicial authority that has to be resolved at some stage.

In the past, there has been a strong voice for taking the AFT out of the purview of the Defence Ministry that is currently in-charge of it.

The argument has been that since AFT is an independent body that passes judgments against the MoD in several cases, it should be shifted under purview of the Law Ministry to avoid any conflict of interest.