Railway authorities must consider and dispose of the overtime allowance representation within 90 days.

The 33 applicants, serving or retired Gate Keepers of the Southern Railway, Alappuzha Section, claimed entitlement to overtime allowance on the basis of the benefit allegedly granted in the Tribunal’s earlier order dated 4 December 2019 in O.A. No. 180/919/2017.

They submitted a representation dated 2 March 2026 to the Senior Divisional Personnel Officer, Southern Railway, Trivandrum Division, seeking consideration of their claim.

As the representation remained pending, they approached the Central Administrative Tribunal.

During the hearing, the applicants confined their prayer to a direction for consideration and disposal of the representation within a specified time, without seeking adjudication of the substantive entitlement at that stage.

Whether the Tribunal should direct the competent railway authority to consider and dispose of the applicants’ pending representation concerning overtime allowance in accordance with law?

Whether the Original Application could be disposed of by issuing such a procedural direction without examining the merits of the applicants’ claim or the question of limitation/statutory period?

The Tribunal applied the general administrative-law principle that a competent authority must consider and dispose of a duly submitted representation in accordance with law, by passing an appropriate and reasoned decision.

It further exercised its jurisdiction to issue a limited mandamus for expeditious consideration of a pending representation, without expressing any opinion on the underlying merits.

No specific statutory provision or judicial precedent was relied upon in the order.

The applicants sought only consideration of their pending representation, rather than an immediate declaration that they were entitled to overtime allowance.

Since the representation dated 2 March 2026 was pending before the fourth respondent, the Tribunal considered it appropriate to require that authority to examine the claim in accordance with law.

The Tribunal expressly refrained from determining whether the earlier order in O.A. No. 180/919/2017 created a corresponding entitlement for the applicants.

It also declined to decide the issue arising from the premature filing of the Original Application, observing that the matter could be disposed of without entering into that question.

The fourth respondent—the Senior Divisional Personnel Officer, Southern Railway, Trivandrum Division—was directed to consider and dispose of the applicants’ representation dated 2 March 2026 in accordance with law within 90 days from the date of receipt of a copy of the Tribunal’s order.

No order as to costs was made.