The Supreme Court on Monday allowed the Centre to extend the term of Chairpersons and Members of various Tribunals—due to retire soon—till September 8, 2026.A Bench led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant passed the order after Attorney General R Venkaramani submitted that a new Tribunal Bill, in terms of directions issued in last year’s judgment in the Madras Bar Association case, was likely to be introduced in Parliament either in the ongoing Budget Session or in the Monsoon Session.“The government is working on a proposal. A Bill is being contemplated. We don’t want any interruption in the meantime. Everybody who was appointed under the Tribunal Reforms Act of 2021 will continue. By next September, either this Budget session or the Monsoon session, a new law is likely to be enacted,” Venkaramani said, adding about 21 members were due to retire in the meantime.In November 2025, the top court had struck down the provisions of the Tribunals Reforms Act, 2021, on appointment and tenure of tribunal members for going against its earlier judgments on the issue.CJI Kant highlighted the lack of accountability of tribunals and said they should be responsible to some authority. “They are not accountable to the government and they are not accountable to us. Who is going to evaluate their integrity and performance? Instead of granting extension alone by a sweeping order, we have to consider their accountability. To whom are they accountable? There should be some mechanism. If their work is not upto the mark, why should their tenure be at all extended?” the CJI asked.Venkataramani said the new Bill will be in accordance with the top court’s 2025 verdict and smoothen the functioning and appointments of members in various tribunals.Senior advocate Sanjay Jain, appearing for the CAT Bar Association, said that the 2025 Madras Bar Association judgment mandated a minimum tenure of five years for the members and around 31 members are set to superannuate soon. He said that another concern is that administrative members are allowed to act as acting chairperson of the tribunal when the judicial members superannuate.