All universities, SKIMS brought under CAT purview
JAMMU, July 31: The Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) has brought all Universities of Jammu and Kashmir and Sher-i-Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences (SKIMS) Soura under the jurisdiction of the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT).
A proposal to this effect was submitted by the Union Home Ministry to the Ministry of DoPT, official sources told the Excelsior.
Minister Incharge DoPT Dr Jitendra Singh approved the proposal after which the DoPT Ministry issued a list of nine Universities and SKIMS Soura whose all disputes have been brought under the purview of the CAT.
The Varsities include University of Jammu, University of Kashmir, SKUAST Jammu, SKUAST Kashmir, Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University (SMVDU) Katra, Islamic University Science and Technology (IUST) Awantipora, Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah University (BGSBU) Rajouri, Cluster University Jammu and Cluster University Srinagar.
The DoPT Ministry has issued the order under Section 14 (2) of AT Act.
“Now all disputes of these Institutions including the Universities and SKIMS Soura will be heard by the CAT benches of Jammu and Srinagar,” the officials said, adding that all such disputes were presently heard by the courts.
Till 2020, there was no bench of CAT in Jammu and Kashmir and disputed pertaining to the Tribunal from Jammu and Kashmir were heard by Chandigarh bench of the CAT.
However, with the intervention of Minister Incharge DoPT Dr Jitendra Singh, who represents Udhampur-Doda Lok Sabha seat for third consecutive term, two benches of CAT were approved for Jammu and Srinagar in 2020 to hear disputes of the employees from the Union Territory.
Initially, one bench was set up and later both the benches were made functional.
