New Delhi, Feb 25 (PTI) The Supreme Court on Tuesday expressed concern over cost of litigation for the public and multiplicity of petitions leading to delay in disposal and asked the Centre if it was prudent to have state administrative tribunals.

A bench of Justices Surya Kant and N Kotiswar Singh, which was hearing a plea related to filling up of vacancies in Karnataka State Administrative Tribunal (SAT), said petitions kept coming for filling up of vacancies in these tribunals.

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"What is the point in keeping these institutions when we don't have manpower to manage it," the bench told additional solicitor general Aishwarya Bhati, representing the Centre.

The court said the situation only increased petitions and cost of petition.

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"People challenge every order before the high court and then again matters goes back before the tribunal. It only delays the disposal of cases," it added.

Bhati said these were policy decisions, taken at the highest level.

The bench agreed there was a statutory requirement to have the Central Administrative Tribunal and SATs in every state but wondered if it "really served the purpose".

"The petitions which are filed before these tribunals can be dealt by the high court and if we increase the sanctioned strength of judges in the high court, it will serve the purpose and expedite the hearing of service matters related cases," offered Justice Surya Kant.

Recalling his experience, when he was the chief justice of Himachal Pradesh High Court, the judge came across one such plea for filling up of vacancies in the tribunal and he instead requested the government for increasing the sanctioned strength of judges in the high court.

"Now, I have come to know that proposal for increasing the sanctioned strength in the high court has been approved," he said.

The bench, which disposed of the petition, asked the Karnataka High Court chief justice to expedite the process of filling of the vacancies in the tribunal, six months ahead of the vacancy to be created.

The petition, the court said, was filed in 2022 when a judicial member of SAT was due to retire and no appointment was made in his place.

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