How to File an Original Application in CAT (2026)

How-To Guide · Central Administrative Tribunal

Updated for 2026 · Claw Editorial

A central government employee who has a service dispute, such as a transfer, promotion, pension or disciplinary matter, does not go to a civil court. The matter goes to the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT), and the case you file there is called an Original Application, or OA. The OA is governed by the Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985. There are a few rules you must get right: you usually have to exhaust departmental remedies first, and you must file within a time limit. This guide covers who can file, the limitation, the format, interim relief, and how to track the OA. Last verified October 2026.

01What an Original Application is

The Central Administrative Tribunal was set up under the Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985, which flows from Article 323A of the Constitution. It decides disputes about the recruitment and conditions of service of people in central government posts, and some other bodies notified under the Act. It has a Principal Bench in Delhi and benches across the country.

An Original Application, or OA, is the main case you file to raise your grievance. It is called original because the tribunal decides it first-hand, not as an appeal from a court. The power to file it comes from Section 19 of the Act.

02Who can file

You can file an OA if your dispute is about recruitment or conditions of service and you fall within CAT jurisdiction. This usually means:

• a serving or retired central government employee;
• an employee of a body or authority that has been notified under the Act; and
• in some cases, a person affected by a recruitment decision.

Common OA subjects are promotion, seniority, transfer, pay fixation, pension, and disciplinary penalties. If your service is not covered by CAT, for example certain state employees, you may need a State Administrative Tribunal or the High Court instead. See state administrative tribunals for service matters.

03Exhaust remedies first

Section 20 of the Act generally says you cannot come straight to CAT. First you must use the remedies available in the service rules, such as a departmental appeal or a representation to the authority.

So the usual path is: make your representation or departmental appeal, wait for the decision, and only then file the OA if you are still aggrieved. The tribunal can relax this in a fit case, but you should be ready to show you tried the departmental remedy or that it would serve no purpose.

04The time limit

Under Section 21, the OA must normally be filed within one year from the date the cause of action arose, usually the date of the order you are challenging.

Where you made a representation and no order was passed on it, the Supreme Court has read the limitation this way: the one year runs from the expiry of six months after the representation. In short, wait up to six months for a reply, and then you have one year to file. You cannot revive a dead claim by making a very late representation and then counting time from it.

05Format and fee

The OA is filed in the form prescribed under the Central Administrative Tribunal (Procedure) Rules, 1987. The form sets out the standard parts:

• the details of the applicant and the respondents (the government department and officers);
• the jurisdiction of the bench;
• a statement of facts and the order being challenged;
• the grounds, and the relief you want; and
• a verification and an affidavit, with the documents annexed.

A nominal fee is payable with the OA. Many benches also accept e-filing. Check the current fee and filing method on the CAT website before you file.

06Interim relief

If you need urgent protection, for example to stop a transfer or a recovery while the case is heard, you ask for interim relief along with the OA. The tribunal can grant a stay or other interim order where you show a strong case and that you would suffer harm otherwise.

Once filed, the OA moves through notice to the respondents, replies, and arguments, ending in an order. An appeal against a CAT order, after the L. Chandra Kumar ruling, goes to a Division Bench of the High Court, not straight to the Supreme Court.

07Where Claw fits

Claw is an all-in-one legaltech platform for Indian advocates, law firms, and corporate legal teams, combining AI-based case search, an AI legal assistant (Legal GPT), case management, and compliance automation across all Indian courts and tribunals.

Service matters often turn on how CAT and the High Courts have decided the same point before, on seniority, pay fixation or a penalty. Claw lets you search 30 crore+ judgments, with High Court decisions from 1990 and Supreme Court decisions from 1950, to find orders on your exact service question, in under 5 seconds. It also tracks cases, orders and hearings across 9,102 courts, benches and forums, so you can follow your OA by party name and catch each listing. Claw does not use your case documents to train its AI models.

Create a FREE Claw account to track your OA and find orders on the same service point, using case search across Indian courts, or search the Central Administrative Tribunal directly.

08Sources and further reading

• India Code (Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985): indiacode.nic.in
• Central Administrative Tribunal (official website): cgat.gov.in
• Claw: clawlaw.in

This guide is general information, not legal advice. Forms, fees and limitation rules can change, so confirm the current position and take advice from an advocate before you file.

09Frequently asked questions