In short. When your case is remitted to the department, the tribunal has not decided your claim; it has sent it back so the competent authority can decide it again, properly and with reasons. The fresh decision usually has to be made within a fixed period, often six to twelve weeks. What you send in that window shapes the result. Within a week, serve the order, file a focused representation that answers the earlier reasons point by point, and ask for a personal hearing. If the fresh decision is wrong again, it can itself be challenged.
Is this your situation?
- The tribunal's order says the department will 'reconsider' or 'pass a fresh order' on your claim.
- Your OA was disposed of with a direction to decide your representation by a speaking order.
- A penalty was set aside and the matter sent back to the disciplinary authority.
- The order gives the department a number of weeks to decide and that time is running.
- You are unsure whether to wait for the department or write to it first.
- The department has already sent a one-line rejection after the tribunal's order.
In short
- A remand is a second chance, not a win. The claim will be decided again by the department, and your papers decide how seriously it is decided.
- Serve the order yourself. Do not assume the department's counsel has sent it; the time limit often runs from the date the department receives a copy.
- Send a fresh representation within days. Answer each reason in the earlier order, attach the documents, and cite the tribunal's observations.
- Ask for a personal hearing in writing. Even if the order does not require one, many authorities grant it when asked.
- A speaking order must deal with your points. A rejection that repeats the old reasons without answering yours can be challenged again.
- Mark the deadline in your diary. If it passes without a decision, a reminder and then an application to enforce the order are the next steps.
What it means when your case is remitted to the department
A matter remitted to the department goes back to the authority whose decision the tribunal found wanting. Usually the tribunal has found a defect in how the decision was made: no reasons, no hearing, a relevant document ignored, a wrong rule applied, or an earlier judgment not considered. It does not substitute its own decision, because the rules give that power to the department, so it sends the file back with directions.
The earlier order is often quashed at the same time. That matters in practice. If a recovery order was quashed and the matter remitted, the recovery cannot continue while the fresh decision is pending. If only a direction to decide a representation was given, without quashing anything, the earlier order may still stand until the new one is passed. Our guide on reading a tribunal order explains how to tell the difference from the operative paragraph.
Many employees feel let down by a remand, because the case seemed strong. It helps to see it the other way. The tribunal has told the department, on record, what it did wrong last time. A department that repeats the mistake does so in the face of a judicial direction, and a second challenge is usually quicker and sharper than the first.
Kinds of remand and what each requires
| What the order says | What the department must do | What you should send |
|---|---|---|
| Decide the pending representation by a speaking order | Pass a reasoned order on the representation within the time fixed | A short supplementary representation, if the original lacks any point or document |
| Reconsider the claim in the light of a cited judgment or OM | Apply that judgment or OM to your facts and give reasons | A note showing how your facts match the judgment, with its copy |
| Pass a fresh order after giving a hearing | Give notice, hear you, then decide | A written submission before the hearing, and attendance on the date |
| Penalty set aside; liberty to proceed from the stage of the defect | Restart from that stage, for example by supplying the inquiry report | A reply at that stage, raising every defence again |
| Penalty upheld on guilt but sent back on quantum | Reconsider the penalty with reasons for proportionality | Representation on service record, mitigating facts and comparable cases |
| Hold a review DPC or reconsider seniority | Convene the review DPC or recast the list, with reasons | APAR copies, upgrade orders and junior's promotion date |
Why the representation you send after the order matters most
The authority deciding a remanded matter usually works from the file. If the file holds only the earlier rejection, a copy of the tribunal's order and your old representation, the new decision tends to look like the old one. A fresh, focused representation after the order changes what is on the file.
It should not be a copy of the OA. The officer is not a judge and will not read a hundred pages. Three to six pages usually do the job: what the tribunal directed, what the earlier order got wrong, your answer to each reason, the documents that prove it, and the specific decision you want. Number the points. A numbered point is hard to skip in a speaking order without that being obvious.
Attach the tribunal's order on top, followed by the earlier rejection, then your supporting papers. If the tribunal made observations in your favour, even ones that are not binding directions, quote them in a line each. Authorities tend to take note of what the tribunal has already said.
Making the fresh decision count, step by step
Get a certified or downloaded copy of the order
Download the order from the CAT website or apply for a certified copy as soon as it is uploaded. Read the operative paragraph closely: who must decide, what, by when, and from which date the time runs.
Serve the order on the right officer
Send it with a short covering letter to the authority named in the order and to the head of the office, by speed post and email, and keep the proof. Our guide on serving the order and following up has more on the covering letter.
Send the fresh representation within a week or two
Address it to the same authority, mention the OA number and the date of the order, and set out your points in numbered paragraphs with annexures. Ask expressly for a personal hearing.
Follow up halfway through the period
If you hear nothing by the midpoint, send a brief reminder referring to the deadline. It puts on record that you have been waiting, which matters later if the deadline is missed.
Attend the hearing with a written note
If a hearing is given, take a two-page note with the key points and leave a copy. Ask that it be placed on file. Officers often decide days later from the file, not from memory.
Read the fresh decision against your points
When the order comes, tick off each of your numbered points. Note which ones are answered, which are ignored, and which are answered with a reason the tribunal had already rejected.
What a proper speaking order looks like
A speaking order is one that shows, on its face, why the authority decided as it did. The Supreme Court has long held that administrative authorities deciding matters affecting rights must record reasons, and in Kranti Associates v. Masood Ahmed Khan (2010) it set out why reasons matter: they show the mind was applied and allow a higher forum to check the decision.
In practice a fresh decision after remand should do four things. It should refer to the tribunal's order and the directions in it. It should list the points raised in your representation. It should answer each with a reason linked to a rule, OM or fact. And it should state the conclusion. An order that recites the history and then says 'the representation has been considered and found devoid of merit' does not meet the standard.
A department cannot fill in reasons later through an affidavit if the order is challenged. Mohinder Singh Gill v. Chief Election Commissioner (1978) is the classic authority that an order must stand on the reasons it gives. This is one more reason to make sure your representation forces the authority to deal with your points in the order itself.
Remand in a disciplinary case: points that catch people out
When a dismissal, removal or compulsory retirement is set aside by the tribunal and the disciplinary authority decides to hold a further inquiry on the same allegations, Rule 10(4) of the CCS (CCA) Rules says the employee is deemed to be under suspension from the date of the original penalty order. A proviso limits this to cases where the court did not go into the merits and set the penalty aside on a technical ground. Many employees expect to be reinstated with full pay and are surprised to find themselves on suspension instead.
Where the defect was that the inquiry report was not supplied, the Supreme Court in Managing Director, ECIL v. B. Karunakar (1993) approved sending the matter back so the report can be given and the employee heard, with questions of back wages depending on the final result. The disciplinary authority picks up from that stage; it does not restart the whole inquiry.
Pay for the intervening period is decided under FR 54-A. If the penalty was set aside on merits, full pay and allowances generally follow. If it was set aside on a procedural ground and no fresh inquiry is held, the competent authority decides the pay after notice to you. Your representation should address pay for that period specifically, because it is often decided in a single line if you do not raise it. The penalty side of such cases is covered on our page on reinstatement after dismissal or removal.
Provisions that give the remand its force
Section 27, Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985
Orders of the tribunal are final and binding on the parties, subject to a writ in the High Court. A direction to decide within a set period must be obeyed unless a higher court stays it.
Rule 24, CAT (Procedure) Rules, 1987
Allows the tribunal to make orders or give directions needed to give effect to its orders. Where a department misreads a remand or delays it, an application under this rule asks the bench to clarify or enforce.
Section 17, Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985
Gives the tribunal the same contempt powers as a High Court. Wilful disobedience of a time-bound direction can lead to contempt proceedings. Under the Contempt of Courts Act, proceedings must be started within one year of the alleged breach, so do not let a missed deadline drift.
Rule 10(4), CCS (CCA) Rules, 1965 and FR 54-A
Deal with deemed suspension where a major penalty is set aside by a court and a further inquiry is ordered, and with pay for the period between the penalty and reinstatement.
Personal hearing: ask even when the order is silent
Many remand orders say only that the department will 'consider and decide'. They do not require a hearing. Ask for one anyway, in the representation itself. Officers who meet the employee and hear the points in person tend to write more careful orders, and a refusal of a reasonable request can itself be noted if the decision is later challenged.
At the hearing, keep to the points. This is not the place to complain about the history of the case or the officers involved. Hand over the two-page note, answer questions directly, and offer any document the officer asks for within a day or two. If a document is asked for that you do not have, say so and offer to ask for it under RTI or from the record room. Our guide on RTI for DPC minutes, APARs and inquiry files explains what can be obtained.
If the authority holds the hearing through video link, ask for the link in writing and test it beforehand. Note the date, the names of those present and anything said that bears on your points, and write it up the same day.
Advocate B.K. Singh's two tips after a remand order
Advocate B.K. Singh's first tip is not to wait for the department to call. Clients often sit quietly after a remand, expecting a letter. He prefers that the fresh representation reaches the authority within a week of the order, with the order on top and the points numbered to match the reasons the tribunal criticised. Officers are often transferred, and a new officer picking up the file knows nothing of the case except what is in it.
His second tip concerns the deadline. He works out the compliance date from the date the department received the order, not the date the order was passed, and writes it on the front of the client's file. A week before that date he sends a short reminder. If the date passes, he sends a notice pointing to the order and the time limit before filing anything, because a bench will usually ask whether the department was reminded.
A made-up example: an APAR representation sent back for a speaking order
Here's a made-up example. Sunita is a stenographer in an income tax office in Indore. Two APARs graded her below the benchmark for promotion, she was never shown them in time, and her juniors were promoted. Her representation was rejected in one line. The Jabalpur Bench quashed the rejection and directed the reviewing authority to decide her representation afresh by a speaking order within ten weeks of receiving the order, and to hold a review DPC if any grading was upgraded.
Her advocate served the order by speed post and email the following week. Ten days later Sunita sent a five-page representation. It listed, year by year, the work she had handled, the commendation letter she had received, the absence of any adverse remark in the narrative portion, and the fact that the grading had dropped without any warning. She asked to be heard.
The authority heard her by video link in the eighth week. The fresh order upgraded one of the two APARs to the benchmark and gave reasons for leaving the other unchanged. A review DPC was then held and recommended her promotion from the date her immediate junior was promoted, on a notional basis.
Not every remand ends like this, and Sunita could still challenge the order on the second APAR. But the reasons in the fresh order were specific, because her representation had made them hard to avoid.
What to keep in the remand file
The order and its service
- The tribunal's order, downloaded and certified copies
- Covering letter serving it on the department, with speed post receipt and email
- A note of the date the department received it and the compliance date
Your submissions
- The fresh representation with numbered points and annexures
- Request for personal hearing and any reply
- Your written note handed over at the hearing
- Reminders sent before and after the deadline
The department's side
- The earlier order the tribunal criticised
- Notice of hearing, if any
- The fresh decision and the date you received it
- Any application by the department for more time
Time limits and costs after a remand
| Stage | Usual time | Cost in general terms |
|---|---|---|
| Order uploaded and copy obtained | A few days to two weeks after pronouncement | Small copying fee for a certified copy |
| Serving the order on the department | Within a week of getting the copy | Postage |
| Fresh representation | Within one to two weeks of serving the order | Advocate's drafting fee, if engaged, agreed in writing beforehand |
| Department's fresh decision | Within the time fixed, commonly six weeks to four months | None to you |
| Department's request for extension | Filed before or soon after the deadline; bench decides | Reply drafting, as agreed |
| Application to enforce or contempt petition | After the deadline passes and a reminder goes unanswered; within one year of the breach | Advocate's fee for that stage, discussed at the first meeting |
| Fresh OA against a fresh adverse decision | Within one year of the fresh order | OA fee of Rs 50 under Rule 7 (check the current figure) |
Ways a fresh decision commonly goes wrong
- Copying the old order. The new order repeats the earlier reasons in slightly different words, without mentioning what the tribunal found wrong with them. This is the most frequent failure and the easiest to show.
- Answering a different question. The tribunal asked whether your ad hoc service counts for seniority, and the order discusses whether you were eligible for regularisation. Compare the question in the operative paragraph with the question the order answers.
- Relying on a new ground you were never told about. If the authority rejects the claim for a reason that was not in the earlier order and was never put to you, you had no chance to answer it. Point that out at once in writing.
- Ignoring the judgment the tribunal cited. When the order directs reconsideration in the light of a named judgment or OM, the fresh decision must apply it to your facts or explain why it does not fit.
- Deciding without the documents you sent. An order that says no proof was produced, when your annexures were on file, suggests the representation never reached the decision-maker. Keep the receipt that shows it did.
- Leaving out the money. The claim is accepted, but arrears, interest or pay for an intervening period are not mentioned. Ask for a specific decision on each, in writing, before treating the matter as closed.
If the department misses the deadline or asks for more time
Departments often file an application for extension of time near or after the deadline, citing file movement, the need for a higher authority's approval or a pending decision on a writ. Benches commonly grant one extension for a reason shown. Repeated extensions without a real reason are viewed less kindly. You can oppose, especially if the delay causes you continuing loss, such as a pension that is not being paid.
If the department files a writ against the tribunal's order in the High Court, the time limit continues unless the High Court stays the order. Ask your advocate to check the High Court cause list and whether any interim order was passed. A department that neither complies nor obtains a stay is in breach.
Where the deadline passes with no decision and no extension, send a notice and then move the bench. Our page on enforcing a tribunal order and contempt explains the options, from an application for directions to a contempt petition.
When the fresh decision goes against you again
A fresh rejection is a new order, and it can be challenged by a fresh OA within a year. Whether to file a fresh OA or seek contempt depends on whether the department actually considered the matter. If it passed a reasoned order that you disagree with, contempt is usually the wrong route, because disagreeing with a decision is not disobedience. If it simply repeated the old order or ignored the tribunal's direction, contempt or an application for directions may be right. Our guide on choosing between contempt and a fresh OA works through that choice.
A second OA is often quicker than the first, because the history is on record and the tribunal already knows the issue. It should attach the earlier order, your fresh representation and the new decision, and show precisely which points were not answered.
Sometimes the fresh decision is partly favourable, as in the example above. You can accept what is given and challenge only the rest. Accepting a benefit under protest, with a written note that you reserve your right to challenge the remainder, is usually safe.
Railway, postal, defence civilian and pension cases
Railways. Remanded matters often go to a divisional or zonal authority who may need the Railway Board's view on policy questions. Ask for a copy of any reference made to the Board, since delay is often caused there.
Department of Posts. Circle offices decide many remanded claims, including Gramin Dak Sevak engagement and TRCA disputes. Send your representation to the authority named in the order and copy it to the circle office, so it is not lost between offices.
Defence civilians. Decisions may need sanction from a command headquarters or a controller of defence accounts for any money payable. Ask in the representation that the sanction process be started alongside the decision, not after it.
Pensioners and families. Fresh decisions on pension often need the Pay and Accounts Office and, for revisions, a revised PPO. Interest on delayed payment under Rule 65 of the CCS (Pension) Rules, 2021 can be claimed in the same representation; do not wait to raise it separately.
What to do this week
Get a copy of the order, read the operative paragraph, serve it on the authority named, and write the compliance date on your file. Then prepare the fresh representation with numbered points, the tribunal's observations quoted, documents attached and a request for a personal hearing. Keep everything you send and receive in one folder. If your original representation never went in properly, our page on writing a representation covers the form it should take.
If the deadline passes without a decision, a reminder and then an enforcement application are the right path; the CAT order compliance page sets out how that is done.
For advice on your fresh representation, or for updates on how departments are complying with remand orders, contact Advocate B.K. Singh.
Frequently asked questions
Does a remand mean I lost my case?
No. It usually means the tribunal found the department's decision defective but left the actual decision to the competent authority. The department must decide again, properly. If it decides wrongly again, that decision can be challenged.
From which date does the department's time limit start?
Most orders count the time from the date the department receives a copy of the order. That is why serving the order yourself, with proof, is useful. Read the operative paragraph for the exact words.
Should I wait for the department to contact me?
It is better to send a fresh representation and a request for a hearing soon after serving the order. Otherwise the authority may decide only on what is already on the file.
Can the same officer who rejected my claim decide it again?
Usually yes, unless the tribunal directed that another authority decide it. A claim of bias needs specific facts. The safer course is to make the representation strong enough that a reasoned order is unavoidable.
What if the department gives a one-line rejection again?
A rejection that does not deal with your points can be challenged, either through an application for directions or a fresh OA. Keep the representation and the new order together. Which route suits you depends on how the order is worded.
Can the department ask for more time?
Yes, by applying to the tribunal, and benches often allow a reasonable extension. You can oppose if the delay is causing you ongoing loss. Repeated requests without good reason are viewed less kindly.
I was dismissed and the order was set aside. Am I back at work?
Not always. If the authority decides to hold a further inquiry on the same charges, you may be treated as under deemed suspension under Rule 10(4) of the CCS (CCA) Rules. Pay for the gap period is decided under FR 54-A.
How long do I have to challenge the fresh decision?
A fresh order is a new decision, and the usual one-year period under Section 21 runs from it. Act sooner if possible, especially in promotion and seniority matters where others are affected.
Advocate B.K. Singh
Founder of B.K. Singh & Associates. MCA, LL.B., LL.M. More than twenty years in practice before the Supreme Court, the Delhi High Court and other High Courts, the Central Administrative Tribunal and other tribunals. This guide was written and reviewed by his team.
This guide explains the law in general terms and is not legal advice. For advice on your own papers, contact the team.
Related guides
ProcedureOA Paper Book: Index, Synopsis, List of Dates and Annexures in Order
How to put together an OA paper book for the Central Administrative Tribunal: index, synopsis, list of dates, Form I and annexures from A-1 onwards.
ProcedureWriting a List of Dates for a Service Case: A Worked Example in Words
A list of dates for a service case built from a real-looking file: which events go in, how each entry is worded, and how the dates show limitation.
ProcedureFraming the Relief Clause in an OA: Asking for Exactly What You Need
How to draft the relief clause in an OA before CAT: quashing the right orders, listing consequential benefits, asking for interest and avoiding vague...
ProcedureWho to Make a Respondent: Union of India, Department Heads and Private Parties
Choosing respondents in an OA before CAT: Union of India through the Secretary, the officers who passed the order, and private parties who must be...
ProcedurePromotion or Seniority Case: Why Affected Juniors Must Be Made Parties
Why a promotion or seniority OA must name the juniors it would push down, how many to implead, and how representative capacity and late impleadment...
ProcedureVakalatnama, Verification and Affidavit in a Tribunal Filing
What a vakalatnama for tribunal cases must contain, how the verification clause and affidavits in an OA are signed, attested and filed, and what goes...