Section 22 of Armed Forces Tribunal Act, 2007: Limitation

Section 22 of the Armed Forces Tribunal Act, 2007 prescribes the limitation rules for applications before the Armed Forces Tribunal in service matters. It is closely linked with Section 21, which deals with exhaustion of remedies before an application is ordinarily admitted.

In simple terms: where a final departmental order has been made after the applicant has pursued the remedies referred to in Section 21, an application to the Tribunal is generally required within six months from that final order. Section 22 also addresses cases where no final order is passed within six months and permits delayed admission where sufficient cause is shown.

What is limitation under Section 22 of the AFT Act?

"Limitation" means the legally prescribed period within which an application should be filed before the Tribunal. Section 22 does not operate in isolation. The starting point depends on the situation described in Section 21(2), particularly whether a final order has been made on the applicant's petition or representation, or whether six months have passed without such a final order.

Text of Section 22 - Limitation

22. Limitation. - The Tribunal shall not admit an application -

(a) in a case where a final order such as is mentioned in clause (a) of sub-section (2) of section 21 has been made unless the application is made within six months from the date on which such final order has been made;

(b) in a case where a petition or a representation such as is mentioned in clause (b) of sub-section (2) of section 21 has been made and the period of six months has expired thereafter without such final order having been made;

(c) in a case where the grievance in respect of which an application is made had arisen by reason of any order made at any time during the period of three years immediately preceding the date on which jurisdiction, powers and authority of the Tribunal became exercisable under this Act, in respect of the matter to which such order relates and no proceedings for the redressal of such grievance had been commenced before the said date before the High Court.

(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1), the Tribunal may admit an application after the period of six months referred to in clause (a) or clause (b) of sub-section (1), as the case may be, or prior to the period of three years specified in clause (c), if the Tribunal is satisfied that the applicant had sufficient cause for not making the application within such period.

Explanation of Section 22(1)(a)

Clause (a) applies where a final order has been made by the Central Government or other competent authority on the petition or representation contemplated by Section 21(2)(a). In that situation, the application before the Tribunal is required to be made within six months from the date on which the final order was made.

Explanation of Section 22(1)(b)

Clause (b) applies where the applicant has made the petition or representation referred to in Section 21(2)(b), but no final order has been passed even after six months. Section 21 treats the applicant as having availed of the available remedies after that six-month period, while Section 22 governs the limitation consequence for approaching the Tribunal.

Explanation of Section 22(1)(c)

Clause (c) is a transitional provision relating to grievances arising from orders made during the three years immediately before the date on which the Tribunal's jurisdiction, powers and authority became exercisable under the Act, provided that proceedings for redress of that grievance had not already been commenced before the High Court.

Important: Clause (c) should be read in its statutory and historical context. For present-day disputes, the six-month rules linked to clauses (a) and (b), together with the Tribunal's power to consider sufficient cause under sub-section (2), are ordinarily the more practically relevant provisions.

Condonation of delay under Section 22(2)

Section 22(2) begins with a non-obstante clause - "Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1)" - and gives the Tribunal power to admit an application beyond the period described in sub-section (1) where the applicant satisfies the Tribunal that there was sufficient cause for not filing within the prescribed period.

"Sufficient cause" is not defined in Section 22 itself. Whether the explanation is sufficient depends on the facts placed before the Tribunal and the judicial assessment of the delay in the particular case.

Relationship between Sections 21 and 22

Section 21 deals with exhaustion of remedies available under the Army Act, 1950, Navy Act, 1957 or Air Force Act, 1950 and the rules and regulations made under them.
Section 21(2)(a) covers a case where a final order has been made rejecting the petition or representation.
Section 21(2)(b) treats remedies as exhausted where six months have elapsed after the petition or representation without a final order.
Section 22 then governs the limitation period for the application before the Tribunal.

Practical points before filing an AFT application

An applicant should identify the date of the impugned order, the date of any statutory petition or representation, the date of the final departmental decision if one was passed, and the date on which six months expired where no final order was made. These dates are material for assessing both exhaustion under Section 21 and limitation under Section 22.

Where the application is filed after the applicable period, the applicant should normally place the facts relied on as sufficient cause before the Tribunal and explain the delay with supporting material where available.

Official legal references

India Code - Armed Forces Tribunal Act, 2007: Official Act page on India Code

Armed Forces Tribunal, Principal Bench: AFT Act and Rules

Related provisions

Read Section 21 - Application not to be admitted unless other remedies exhausted and Section 23 - Procedure and powers of the Tribunal for the provisions immediately preceding and following Section 22.