Vakalatnama, Verification and Affidavit in a Tribunal Filing

Three papers, three different jobs

People often think of the signing session as one formality. It is three. The vakalatnama is a written authority from you to an advocate, allowing him or her to appear, file, argue and receive papers in your case. The verification is a short paragraph at the end of the OA where you state, on your own responsibility, that the facts in it are true. An affidavit is a separate sworn statement, made before someone authorised to administer an oath, used to support an application or prove a fact such as service.

Each carries its own consequences. A defective vakalatnama means the advocate's filing may not be accepted. A false verification can expose you to prosecution for false evidence under Section 229 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, which replaced the old Section 193 of the IPC. An affidavit that does not say where your knowledge comes from may be given little weight.

Section 23 of the Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985 lets an applicant present the case personally or with the help of a legal practitioner of his choice. The CAT (Procedure) Rules, 1987 then set out the paperwork. If you are filing in person, you skip the vakalatnama but still sign and verify the OA and swear any affidavit yourself.

Vakalatnama for tribunal cases: what it must contain

Rule 9(3) of the CAT (Procedure) Rules says that where an application is filed by a legal practitioner, it shall be accompanied by a duly executed vakalatnama. Duly executed means signed by you, accepted in writing by the advocate, and complete in its particulars. There is no single printed form prescribed by the rules; most bar associations sell a standard form, and many advocates use their own printed version.

A complete vakalatnama names the tribunal and the bench (for example, the Central Administrative Tribunal, Principal Bench, New Delhi), the parties as they appear in the memo of parties, and the nature of the case. If an OA number has not yet been given, the space is left for the registry to fill or described as "OA of 2026". It names the advocate or advocates you are engaging, with enrolment numbers, and carries your signature and the date.

The advocate signs below the word accepted, with his enrolment number and address. Several advocates of the same firm can be named in one vakalatnama so that any of them can appear. A vakalatnama for an OA does not automatically cover a writ in the High Court or an SLP in the Supreme Court: each forum needs a fresh one.

In most states, the advocate must affix a welfare stamp on every vakalatnama filed before a court or tribunal under the advocates' welfare fund law that applies there. The value differs from state to state, and the bar association counter at the bench usually sells it. A vakalatnama without the stamp is a common reason for the registry to raise an objection.

Before you sign the vakalatnama

• Your name is spelt the same way as in your service book and appointment letter.
• Your designation and office, or your status as retired employee, widow or candidate, matches the OA.
• The bench named is the one where the case will actually be filed.
• The advocates named are the ones you have agreed to engage; ask about anyone you do not recognise.
• The date is filled in, and you sign in the same style you use on official papers.
• Any fee clause printed on the form matches what was agreed in writing; fees are discussed separately and should not be left to a printed line.
• You keep a photocopy or photograph of the signed form.

The verification clause at the end of the OA

Form I of the CAT (Procedure) Rules, which is the prescribed format for an OA, ends with a verification. In it you give your name, age, parentage, designation and address, and you state that the contents of certain paragraphs are true to your personal knowledge and that the remaining paragraphs are believed to be true on the basis of legal advice. You also say you have not suppressed any material fact. You sign it and date it, and give the place.

The split between paragraphs matters. Facts about your joining date, the orders you received and the representations you sent are within your personal knowledge. Paragraphs setting out grounds, rules and case law rest on legal advice. Some facts, such as what the DPC considered, may be known only from records received through RTI, and a careful verification says that too. If you verify everything as personal knowledge, including legal arguments you have never read, the department can use that against you.

The reply filed by the department is verified in a similar way. Rule 12(2) requires it to be signed and verified as a written statement, by the respondent or a person duly authorised, in the manner of Order VI Rule 15 of the Code of Civil Procedure. When an officer verifies a reply on the basis of records, check who signed it and whether he had authority; it is a small point but sometimes useful.

Rejoinders and amended OAs need a fresh verification. Many applicants sign the original OA carefully and then sign the rejoinder in a hurry. The rejoinder often contains the most specific factual claims in the case, so give it the same attention.

Which paper needs what kind of signature

Affidavit in an OA and its applications

An OA itself is verified, not sworn, but several applications filed with or after it need an affidavit. The most common is the application for condonation of delay: Rule 8(4) requires a separate application supported by an affidavit whenever the OA is filed beyond the time in Section 21. The affidavit should give the facts that explain the delay, with dates, and should not repeat the legal arguments. Our guide on reasons accepted for delay discusses what those facts look like.

An affidavit is sworn or affirmed before an authorised person: usually a notary or an oath commissioner appointed by the High Court or a district court. The deponent signs each page, the person administering the oath identifies the deponent (or the advocate identifies him), and the attestation is stamped and dated. Whether the affidavit must be on stamp paper depends on the state's stamp law and the bench's practice, so ask your advocate or the registry before buying any.

An affidavit should say, paragraph by paragraph, what is from personal knowledge and what is from records or information. Rule 17(5) spells this out for review applications, and it is good practice everywhere. When an affidavit is filed to bring new documents on record, the separate guide on additional affidavits applies.

Never sign an affidavit with blank spaces left for later. If a date or figure is not yet known, ask that the draft wait until it is, or that the paragraph be removed.

Attestation: two meanings in a tribunal filing

In tribunal practice, attestation is used for two different things. The first is attestation of an affidavit by the notary or oath commissioner, confirming that you swore it in their presence. The second is attestation of copies: Rule 9(2) of the CAT (Procedure) Rules allows the documents filed with the OA to be attested as true copies by a legal practitioner or a gazetted officer, and requires them to be marked serially as Annexures A-1, A-2 and so on.

The impugned order, the order you are challenging, must be filed as an attested true copy under Rule 9(1). If your copy is a blurred photocopy of a photocopy, get the clearest one possible, and be ready to show the original if the bench asks. Where the department never gave you a copy, say so in the OA and annex whatever proof you have, such as an RTI reply or a pay slip showing the effect.

Documents in Hindi or a regional language are commonly accepted at benches where that language is in ordinary use, but an English translation is often required elsewhere. The translation should be certified as true by the person who made it. Ask the registry of your bench rather than assuming.

Signing everything in one visit

A single, well-planned sitting avoids most registry objections about signatures.

1. Receive the final draft a day early

   Ask your advocate to send the final OA, the paragraphs list for verification and every affidavit at least a day before you sign. Read them at home, mark questions and check every date against your own papers.

2. Correct facts before the print is made

   If a date of joining, a pay level or a name is wrong, get it corrected in the draft. Hand-written corrections on a signed OA need initials on each change and are a frequent source of objections.

3. Carry original identity proof and your papers

   Bring your Aadhaar card or service identity card, and the originals of your key documents. The notary will want to see identity, and your advocate may want to compare annexures with originals.

4. Sign every page where required

   Sign the OA at the end and at the verification, sign each page of every affidavit, and sign the vakalatnama. Advocate B.K. Singh asks clients to initial the bottom of each page of the final OA as well, because it confirms that the version filed is the version read, and it settles any later argument about pages being changed.

5. Swear the affidavits in person

   Go before the notary or oath commissioner yourself. Do not let anyone take signed affidavits to be notarised in your absence; that is improper and can make the affidavit worthless.

6. Leave with a full copy

   Take a scanned or photographed copy of every signed page. If the registry returns the file, you will be able to see exactly what was signed and what needs redoing.

Memo of appearance: how the department's lawyer comes on record

When the tribunal issues notice on your OA, the department is usually represented by a government counsel: a standing counsel or panel counsel engaged through the Ministry of Law and Justice or the department itself. Government counsel generally do not file a vakalatnama signed by the Secretary. They file a memo of appearance, a short document stating that they appear for the named respondents, or they accept notice in court and the order sheet records it.

A private respondent, such as a junior colleague in a seniority case, engages an advocate in the ordinary way and files a vakalatnama. Some departments also authorise a departmental officer as a presenting officer, as Section 23 of the Act permits, to assist or appear.

For you, the memo of appearance has one practical use: once it is on record, copies of your rejoinder and applications can be served on that counsel instead of on the Secretary in Delhi. Note the counsel's name, phone and email from the order sheet or the memo, and give it to your advocate if they do not already have it.

Changing your advocate in a pending case

You can change your advocate at any stage. The new advocate files a fresh vakalatnama. Under Rule 39 of the Bar Council of India's rules on professional conduct, an advocate should not appear where another advocate already has a vakalatnama on record, except with that advocate's consent; if consent cannot be had, he must apply to the tribunal stating the reasons, and the tribunal decides.

In practice, ask the earlier advocate for a written no objection and return of your original documents. Most will give it. If the earlier advocate is unreachable, the new advocate files the vakalatnama with an application explaining the position, and the bench usually allows it after notice.

Do not leave the old vakalatnama on record with no one appearing. If your case is called and nobody responds, the OA can be dismissed for default. The guide on restoring an OA dismissed for non-appearance explains the repair, but it is better not to need it.

Signing from another city, or from abroad

You do not have to sign in the same city as the bench. Under Rule 6 of the CAT (Procedure) Rules, your OA is filed where you are posted or where the cause of action arose, which may be far from where you now live, especially after retirement. Your advocate can courier the papers to you, you sign before a local notary, and send them back by tracked post.

E-filing makes this easier but does not remove the need for signed documents. The scanned vakalatnama, verification and affidavits must be legible and complete; the originals are commonly kept by the advocate and produced if called for. Advocate B.K. Singh's practice for clients living far away is to have them sign before a notary near home, scan every page the same day, and send the originals by speed post with tracking, so the filing is not held up waiting for the courier.

Pensioners and family members living abroad can swear an affidavit before an Indian consular officer, who is authorised to administer oaths, or before a local notary, with whatever authentication the bench accepts. Check with your advocate before arranging it, because practice differs between benches. A short video call with the advocate before signing helps confirm you have read the papers.

If you work in a remote posting, such as a DRDO laboratory in Leh or a lighthouse station in the Andamans, plan the signing around connectivity and postal times. A week's slack on a limitation deadline can disappear in transit.

Time and cost for the signing papers

What goes wrong with these papers

• Verification paragraphs that do not match the OA. The OA is redrafted to 32 paragraphs but the verification still refers to paragraphs 1 to 28. Recheck numbers after every change.
• Unsigned or undated vakalatnama. Either the client or the advocate forgets one signature. The registry returns the whole file.
• Affidavits notarised without the deponent present. This is a serious irregularity, and the department may question the affidavit's validity.
• Joint OA with one applicant's verification missing. In an OA by several applicants, each one verifies. Someone on leave or on tour is the usual gap.
• Name spelt differently in different papers. The vakalatnama says Rajinder, the OA says Rajender, the service book says Rajendra. Use the service book spelling and mention any alias.
• Signing the rejoinder without reading it. The rejoinder answers the department's reply with new facts. A careless one can contradict the OA.

Retirees, families, candidates and those filing in person

A retiree signs as a retired employee, giving the last post held and the PPO number where relevant. Family members claiming family pension or arrears sign in their own right, not as the deceased employee; where several heirs are claiming, each one usually signs and verifies, or the others give a consent that the advocate files. The page on pension, PPO and gratuity cases covers the substance of those claims.

Candidates who are not yet in service describe themselves by roll number and the examination concerned. A candidate below 18 is rare in central recruitment, but where it arises, a guardian signs on the minor's behalf.

An applicant filing in person does not need a vakalatnama but must verify the OA and swear any affidavit personally, and should carry identity proof to the registry. The registry may also ask for an address for service. Our page on arguing your own OA covers the help a lawyer can still give in drafting and checking these papers.

Railway, postal and defence civilian employees follow the same rules before the tribunal. The only difference is in the department's side: who signs its reply and which counsel files the memo of appearance.

Getting the papers right the first time

Most problems with a vakalatnama for tribunal filing, a verification or an affidavit come from haste in the last two days before filing. Read the final draft at home, carry identity proof, sign before the notary in person, check the paragraph numbers in the verification, and keep a copy of everything you sign. If the registry still raises an objection, the guide on common filing objections and how to cure them walks through the repair.

If you are preparing an OA now, the page on preparing and filing your OA under Section 19 covers the full sequence, and the order of papers in the paper book is set out in the guide on the OA paper book.

To have your draft OA, vakalatnama and affidavits checked before you sign them, or for updates on the tribunal's filing practice, contact Advocate B.K. Singh.