Kriti Agrawal –
The Supreme Court ordered Justice Shiva Kirti Singh, a former Supreme Court Judge, to stay as Chairman of the Telecom Disputes Settlement Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) until a fresh appointment is made.
On an interlocutory application filed in the Madras Bar Association’s suit challenging the Tribunal Reforms Ordinance, a bench comprising Justice L Nageswara Rao, Justice Hemant Gupta, and Justice S Ravindra Bhat issued the direction.
The bench also asked the Chief Justice of India to speed up the appointment process.
According to Attorney General KK Venugopal, Justice Singh was to stay for three months till a fresh appointment was made, as per a Supreme Court ruling issued in January.
However, as the new appointment has yet to be announced, the Centre has written to CJI Ramana requesting the formation of a search and selection committee.
The Union Ministry sent a note to the TDSAT Chairperson on March 31, urging him to resign by April 20.
The new Tribunals Reforms Ordinance, according to the message, stipulates that the Chairperson’s term cannot exceed four years.
Lawyers practising before the Tribunal objected to this communication.
The bench said, “We believe that, based on the AG’s submissions, the extraordinary situation, and the letter dated May 31, 2021, Justice Shiva Kirti Singh will continue as Chairman until a new appointment is made. We request that the Chief Justice of India accelerate the appointment process.”
