Arun Goyal & Ors. vs. Union of India & Ors.
Background
The petitioners had applied to be added ("impleaded") as parties in a pending case before the Central Administrative Tribunal, originally filed by a different set of government employees (Respondents 5 to 15) regarding a service-related dispute. The Tribunal had rejected their impleadment application, prompting them to challenge that rejection before the High Court.
Decision Breakdown
At the hearing, counsel for the original applicants (Respondents 5 to 15) informed the Court that he had no objection to the petitioners being added as parties. On this consensus, the High Court set aside the Tribunal's order to the extent it had rejected the impleadment application, and directed that the petitioners be added as additional respondents in the pending Tribunal case, with the other side to file an updated list of parties within a week and the newly-added parties permitted to appear before the Tribunal at its next hearing.
Lesson Learnt
Where a person's interests may be affected by an ongoing case before a tribunal, they can seek to be added as a party, and if the other side has no genuine objection, courts will readily correct a Tribunal's refusal to allow this, keeping the underlying dispute moving quickly through consent-based resolution of procedural issues.