Home > AFT Act 2007 > Section 35

Section 35 of AFT Act 2007 - Provision for Filing of Certain Appeals

Section 35 of the Armed Forces Tribunal Act, 2007 is a transitional appeal provision. It addresses certain decrees or orders made before establishment of the Tribunal where the underlying cause of action would have fallen within the Tribunal's jurisdiction if it had arisen after establishment.

Updated: September 7, 2026

In brief: For qualifying pre-establishment decrees or orders, Section 35 directs the appeal to the Armed Forces Tribunal and prescribes a 90-day filing period counted from the Tribunal's establishment or from receipt of the copy of the decree or order, whichever is later.

What is the purpose of Section 35?

Section 35 deals with appellate remedies arising out of certain suits or proceedings decided before the Armed Forces Tribunal was established. It prevents a gap in the transition from the earlier court or authority system to the Tribunal by identifying when an appeal is to lie to the Tribunal.

The provision is closely connected with Section 34, which deals with transfer of pending cases.

Section 35 - Provision for filing of certain appeals

Section 35: Where any decree or order has been made or passed by any court other than a High Court, or by any other authority, in any suit or proceeding before establishment of the Tribunal, and the cause of action is such that it would have been within the jurisdiction of the Tribunal if it had arisen after such establishment, the appeal mechanism specified in Section 35 applies if the remaining statutory conditions are satisfied.

The provision further states that where no appeal had been preferred before establishment, or where an appeal had been preferred and was pending for disposal before any court including a High Court, and the time for preferring such appeal under the applicable law had not expired before establishment, the appeal shall lie to the Tribunal within 90 days from establishment of the Tribunal or within 90 days from receipt of the copy of the decree or order, whichever is later.

Conditions for an appeal under Section 35

Condition	Requirement
Nature of decision	A decree or order made or passed before establishment of the Tribunal.
Original forum	A court other than a High Court, or another authority.
Jurisdictional test	The cause of action would have fallen within the Tribunal's jurisdiction if it had arisen after establishment.
Appeal status	No appeal had been preferred before establishment, or an appeal had been preferred and was pending before a court including a High Court.
Existing limitation	The time for preferring the appeal under the law then in force had not expired before establishment of the Tribunal.
Forum under Section 35	The qualifying appeal lies to the Armed Forces Tribunal.

90-day time limit under Section 35

Section 35 uses two possible starting points for its special 90-day period. The appeal is to be filed within 90 days from the date on which the Tribunal is established, or within 90 days from the date on which the copy of the decree or order is received, whichever is later.

Whichever is later: The statutory wording gives the appellant the benefit of the later of the two specified dates. This is part of the transitional structure of Section 35 and should be distinguished from the separate limitation provisions governing ordinary applications and appeals under other sections of the Act.

Why does Section 35 exclude decrees or orders of a High Court?

The opening words of Section 35 refer to a decree or order made or passed by a court "other than a High Court" or by another authority. This limitation is part of the express statutory text and should be applied as written when determining whether Section 35 governs a particular decree or order.

However, the section separately recognizes that an appeal already preferred before establishment may have been pending for disposal before any court, including a High Court.

Section 35 compared with Section 34

Section 34 primarily addresses qualifying suits or proceedings that were themselves pending when the Tribunal was established. Section 35 addresses certain appellate rights arising from decrees or orders already made or passed before establishment.

Official legal resources

Related AFT Act provisions

See Section 33 - Exclusion of jurisdiction of civil courts, Section 34 - Transfer of pending cases, and Section 36 - Proceedings before Tribunal to be judicial proceedings. The wider statutory structure is available on the Armed Forces Tribunal Act, 2007 page.

This page is an informational presentation of Section 35. Whether the transitional appeal provision applies in a particular historical matter depends on the original forum, date and nature of the decree or order, the appeal status, the applicable limitation period and the Tribunal's statutory jurisdiction.