Running Short

Data clearly shows that filling up vacancies at the Securities Appellate Tribunal has not always been high on the government’s priority list; currently it is one member short

- ASHISH RUKHAIYAR

THE DAY WAS February 29, 2016. Then Finance Minister Arun Jaitley rose to deliver the Budget speech. As he reached the part focussed on financial sector reforms, he touched upon the subject of the Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT)—the tribunal that has been set up to hear appeals against orders passed by key regulatory bodies like the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai) and the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA).

“I also propose to amend the Sebi Act, 1992, in the coming year to provide for more members and benches of the Securities Appellate Tribunal,” said the late Jaitley who was finance minister from 2014 to 2019.

More than seven years have passed since the statement was made but till date no progress has been made on the announcement. There is just one bench of SAT in Mumbai that is manned by a presiding officer—a retired judge—and two members, one judicial and one technical. In fact, data shows that filling up vacancies at SAT has not always been high on the government’s priority list.