Section 6 of the Armed Forces Tribunal Act, 2007: Qualifications of Chairperson and Members

Section 6 of the Armed Forces Tribunal Act, 2007 originally prescribes the qualifications for appointment of the Chairperson, Judicial Members and Administrative Members of the Armed Forces Tribunal. For current appointments, however, Section 6 must be read with Section 9A of the AFT Act, the Tribunals Reforms Act, 2021 and the Tribunal (Conditions of Service) Rules, 2021.

Current-law note: The bare text of Section 6 remains important for understanding the Act, but the present qualification framework for appointments made under the post-2021 regime is governed by Chapter II of the Tribunals Reforms Act, 2021 and the Tribunal (Conditions of Service) Rules, 2021. The 2021 Rules broaden, among other things, eligibility for Judicial Member and Administrative Member.

What does Section 6 of the AFT Act, 2007 provide?

Section 6(1) - Chairperson: A person is not qualified for appointment as Chairperson unless he is a retired Judge of the Supreme Court or a retired Chief Justice of a High Court.

Section 6(2) - Judicial Member: A person is not qualified for appointment as a Judicial Member unless he is or has been a Judge of a High Court.

Section 6(3) - Administrative Member: Under the original provision, a person is not qualified unless the prescribed senior military and Judge Advocate General service requirements are satisfied.

Explanation: Where a serving person is appointed as an Administrative Member under the original provision, that person must retire from service before assuming the appointment.

Current qualifications under the 2021 legal framework

Section 3 of the Tribunals Reforms Act, 2021 authorises the Central Government to prescribe qualifications and other service conditions for tribunal Chairpersons and Members. It also provides that a person who has not completed 50 years of age is not eligible for appointment as a Chairperson or Member.

Rule 3(14) of the Tribunal (Conditions of Service) Rules, 2021 contains the AFT-specific qualification criteria. In practical terms, the present position is as follows:

Post	Current qualification framework
Chairperson	Must be, or have been, a Judge of the Supreme Court, or must be, or have been, a Chief Justice of a High Court.
Judicial Member	Must be, or have been, a Judge of a High Court; or must have been an advocate for 10 years with substantial experience in service-matter litigation before the Central Administrative Tribunal, Armed Forces Tribunal, a High Court or the Supreme Court.
Administrative Member	Eligibility extends to specified senior Armed Forces service, qualifying Judge Advocate General service, or a person of ability, integrity and standing with at least 30 years of specified professional experience useful to the Armed Forces Tribunal.

Meaning and effect of Section 6

Section 6 is the original eligibility provision in Chapter II of the Armed Forces Tribunal Act, 2007. It identifies the judicial and military background Parliament initially required for the Tribunal's leadership and membership. The later tribunal-reform legislation created an overriding framework for qualifications, appointments and service conditions for appointments governed by that regime.

Accordingly, Section 6 should not be read in isolation when checking present-day eligibility. The current inquiry should include Section 9A of the AFT Act, Section 3 of the Tribunals Reforms Act, 2021 and Rule 3(14) of the Tribunal (Conditions of Service) Rules, 2021.

Key points

The AFT Act is Act No. 55 of 2007.
Section 6 is titled "Qualifications for appointment of Chairperson and other Members".
The original Section 6 limits Judicial Member eligibility to a High Court Judge and specifies senior Armed Forces criteria for Administrative Members.
The present 2021 Rules also permit certain advocates with 10 years of substantial service-matter litigation experience to qualify as Judicial Members.
The present 2021 Rules provide additional routes for eligibility as an Administrative Member.
Under Section 3(1) of the Tribunals Reforms Act, 2021, a person below 50 years of age is not eligible for appointment as Chairperson or Member.

Section 6 forms part of Chapter II dealing with establishment of the Tribunal and its Benches. It should be read together with Section 5 - Composition of Tribunal and Benches, Section 7 - Appointment of Chairperson and other Members, Section 8 - Term of office, and Section 9 - Resignation and removal.

Official legal resources

Law reviewed and article updated: 7 September 2026.