Armed Forces Tribunal Faces Severe Shortage Of Members & Staff Across Benches, Reveals Defence Ministry Data

Mumbai: The Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT), established to deliver speedy justice to service personnel and veterans, is currently grappling with a total shortage of 205 administrative and support staff members across its principal bench and 10 regional benches nationwide, alongside 12 vacant posts for tribunal members.

Defence Ministry Shares Data In Lok Sabha

The statistics were disclosed by the Minister of State for Defence in a written reply to a Lok Sabha question asked by MP Asaduddin Owaisi. While replying to queries regarding the pendency of over 35,000 cases before the military judicial body, the Ministry denied that figure, but detailed data tabled in Parliament revealed widespread vacancies across both the judicial and administrative wings of the tribunal system.

The Armed Forces Tribunal adjudicates service conditions, pay disputes, promotions, pensions and appeals against court-martial verdicts for personnel subject to the Army Act, Navy Act, and Air Force Act. Defence experts point out that prolonged vacancies -- particularly in regional benches with zero judicial members -- risk accumulating backlogs and delaying legal redress for serving personnel, ex-servicemen and military families.

Several Regional Benches Without Members

The data submitted by the Ministry shows that several regional benches are currently operating without a single member. The benches in Srinagar (functioning at Jammu), Jabalpur, and Guwahati have zero serving members against two sanctioned posts each, effectively rendering them unmanned at the judicial level.

Out of the 11 benches listed in the annexure, Lucknow has 2 vacant member positions, Chandigarh, Kochi, Chennai, and Kolkata each report 1 vacant member position while principal bench in New Delhi, Mumbai and Jaipur currently have no vacant positions for judicial or administrative members.

Support Staff Shortages Affect Operations

However, staff shortages have hit the hardest at principal bench and key regional benches. Alongside member shortages, the operational functioning of the tribunal is heavily impacted by support staff vacancies, totaling 205 vacant positions across all benches.

The Principal Bench in New Delhi faces the highest burden, with 38 vacant staff positions against a current operational strength of 65. The Lucknow bench follows with 31 vacancies against a current strength of 57, and Chandigarh has 26 vacant posts against a current strength of 63.

The Mumbai regional bench is currently functioning with a staff strength of 33, but is short by 12 personnel. However, its judicial bench strength remains intact with 2 active members and zero member vacancies.

The Guwahati bench faces severe administrative strain, reporting 22 staff vacancies against an active staff strength of just 12 -- meaning nearly two-thirds of its administrative support positions remain unfilled.