The requirement for the Vice Chairman of the CAT to have a legal background to ensure an independent judiciary and inspire public confidence, as mandated by Article 50 of the Constitution.

( 1 ) HEARD Sri V. B. Singh, learned Senior Advocate and Sri P. S. Bhagel Advocate for petitioner, and learned Counsel for the Central Government.

( 2 ) LEARNED Counsel for respondent prays for and is granted 3 weeks to file counter-affidavit.

( 3 ) ISSUE notice to respondent Nos. 4, 5 and 6 returnable at an early date.

( 4 ) LIST peremptorily on 24. 3. 2002 on which date the petition may be finally disposed off. .

( 5 ) THE petitioner has prayed for quashing the panel prepared for the posts of Vice Chairman in various Benches of the Central Administrative Tribunal (hereinafter referred to as CAT ).

( 6 ) SECTION 6 (2) of the Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985 states :

"a person shall not be qualified for appointment as the Vice Chairman unless he is, or has been (or is qualified to be) a Judge of a High Court; or (a) has, for at least two years, held the post of Secretary to the Government of India or any other post under the Central or a State Government carrying a scale of pay which is not less than that of a Secretary to the Government of India; or (b) has for at least five years, held the post of an Additional Secretary to the Government of india or any other post under the Central or a State Government carrying a scale of pay which is not less than that of an Additional Secretary to the Government of India; or (c) has, for a period of not less than three years, held office as a Judicial Member or an administrative Member. "

( 7 ) AT first glance a perusal of the above provision gives the impression that even a Secretary or additional Secretary to the Government of India can be appointed as Vice Chairman. However, we are of the opinion that Section 6 (2) cannot be read in isolation but it must be read alongwith article 50 of the Constitution, which states : "separation of judiciary from executive. The State shall take steps to separate the judiciary from the executive in the public services of the State. "

( 8 ) THE object of Article 50 of the Constitution was that there should be separation of the judiciary from the executive so that there may be an independent judiciary in which alone the public can have confidence. This view is also supported by the decision of the Supreme Court in state of Maharashtra v. Labor Law Practitioners Association and Ors. , AIR 1998 S. C. 1233.

( 9 ) IN our prima facie opinion the Vice Chairman of CAT can only be a sitting or retired High court Judge or an Advocate who is qualified for appointment as a High Court Judge.

( 10 ) A person who has been in executive service for 20 to 30 years naturally develops a pro-executive approach and his thinking process becomes coloured thereby. However, since the cat is a judicial body that has to decide judicial matters it must function as an independent body, as that alone can inspire the confidence of the public. A person who comes from a legal background has an independent mind, whether he is or has been a High Court Judge or an advocate having more than 10 years practice.

( 11 ) WE are not expressing any opinion on the point whether a member of the Tribunal should also be a person with a legal background. However we are certainly of the opinion that the Vice chairman must be a person with a legal background since the person who presides over a Bench must inspire confidence in the public. The very object of Article 50 will be subverted, in our opinion, if the Presiding Officer is a person from the executive. The Directive Principles in the constitution cannot be treated as merely ornamental, as held by the Supreme Court in keshavananda Bharti v. State of Kerala, 1973 (4) SCC 225, Minerava Mills v. Union of India, air 1980 S. C. 1789 and Unnikrishnan v. State of A. P. , AIR 1993 S. C. 2178. In our opinion the persons who have been a Secretary or Additional Secretary of the Government of India can only be appointed as Vice Chairman in exceptional circumstances if no person with legal background as mentioned in clause (a) of Section 6 (2) is av