Govt may propose Tribunal Reforms Bill 2026 in Lok Sabha on Monday

The proposed Tribunal Reforms Bill may create a four-member National Tribunals Commission to oversee appointments, performance and complaints involving tribunals

The government may propose establishing a four-member National Tribunals Commission (NTC) to manage the search and selection of chairpersons and members of tribunals across the country through the Tribunal Reforms Bill, 2026, which is scheduled to be introduced in the Lok Sabha on Monday, sources aware of the development said. 

The NTC may be headed by a retired Supreme Court judge or a retired Chief Justice of a High Court. In addition to the chairperson, the proposed commission is likely to have one judicial member and two technical members, the sources said. 

The judicial member is likely to be either a retired Chief Justice or a retired judge of a High Court, while the technical members will be experts with at least 25 years of experience in public administration, finance, law, accountancy, banking, management or technology. 

Apart from managing the search and selection of tribunal members, the NTC may also be tasked with reviewing the performance of tribunals nationwide and overseeing inquiries into complaints against tribunal chairpersons or members, the sources said. 

The scheduled introduction of the Bill in the Lok Sabha comes shortly after the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice presented its report on the ‘Review of Functioning of Tribunal System in the Country’ to both Houses of Parliament. 

The report said vacancies at various levels adversely affected the scheduling of hearings, preparation of records, court proceedings, administrative supervision and overall case disposal. 

To address this challenge, the parliamentary standing committee suggested that all vacant posts of members in tribunals be filled in a timely and continuous manner so that the institutions could function at their optimum capacity. It also recommended that the government examine the feasibility of maintaining a reserve panel or waiting list of selected candidates, valid for a specified period, to facilitate the expeditious filling of vacancies arising from candidates not joining or leaving early. 

The absence of adequate infrastructure or members in tribunals has been a major challenge for the government. Earlier this year, Chief Justice of India Surya Kant set up an advisory panel to assess the infrastructure requirements of courts across the country and make a case for a dedicated government allocation of ₹40,000-50,000 crore for the judiciary. 

The report seeking dedicated funds for the judiciary had also highlighted how the Company Law Tribunals operate from offices in the central government office complex on Lodhi Road in New Delhi, while the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal and the Delhi State Bench of the Goods and Services Tax Appellate Tribunal operate from separate floors of Hotel Samrat in the city.