The Delhi High Court has directed the Union Government to take an expeditious decision on issuing a notification for the appointment of a Presiding Officer to the Appellate Tribunal under Section 253 of the New Delhi Municipal Council Act, 1994. The Court emphasised that the statutory appellate mechanism cannot remain non-functional due to administrative delay and expressed hope that the Centre would complete the process preferably within four weeks.
The matter was heard by a Division Bench comprising the Chief Justice and a companion judge in a public interest litigation filed by Shivmani Yadav. The petitioner pointed out that the Appellate Tribunal under the Act had been non-functional since November last year owing to the absence of a duly appointed Presiding Officer. As a result, appeals under Sections 247 and 254 of the Act could not be heard, leaving litigants without an effective statutory remedy.
During the hearing, counsel for the New Delhi Municipal Council informed the Court that a communication had already been sent to the Ministry of Home Affairs requesting issuance of the necessary notification for appointment. The High Court took note of this submission and observed that the power to constitute and notify the Appellate Tribunal lies with the Central Government under the statute.
Without issuing formal notice in the writ petition, the Court disposed of the matter with a direction to the Union Government to consider and decide the issue of appointment as expeditiously as possible. The order underscores the importance of ensuring that statutory tribunals remain functional so that citizens are not deprived of their right to appeal under the law.
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