Federal Minister for Information Technology and Telecommunication, Dr. Umar Saif, Thursday said that the government has issued gazette notification for the establishment of the first-ever Telecommunication Appellate Tribunal (TAT).
In a video message, the minister said that President Arif Alvi has approved amendments to the Telecom Act for the creation of this Tribunal, which will operate under a Presidential Ordinance in the absence of National Assembly.
Dr. Umar Saif highlighted that the establishment of the Telecom Tribunal fulfills a longstanding demand of the telecom sector. The specialized Tribunal will now handle telecom sector disputes and cases instead of the High Courts, with the aim of expediting the resolution of legal issues and facilitating rapid progress in the telecom sector.
The Telecom Tribunal will comprise technical experts responsible for comprehensively and swiftly deciding all appeals filed by aggrieved parties. This move is expected to alleviate the burden on High Courts regarding the adjudication of technical matters related to the telecom sector.
According to the minister, the Ministry of Law will nominate the chairperson and members of the Tribunal. The Chairperson must be a Judge of the High Court or a lawyer with 15 years of experience, he said.
Similarly, the Tribunal will have 2-member technocrats, whose number may be increased or decreased from time to time.
Dr. Umar Saif further explained that, according to the ordinance, the Telecom Tribunal is obligated to decide within 90 days on approved appeals from telecom operators against decisions made by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA).
Previously, parties had to approach the High Court for any operational or service disputes between PTAs and telecom operators, leading to unnecessary delays. The establishment of the Telecom Tribunal aims to streamline the resolution process and ensure more timely decisions in the telecom sector.—APP
