law: The Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985
  22. Procedure and Powers of Tribunals. -
  (1) A Tribunal shall not be bound by the
  
  procedure laid down in the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908), but shall
  
  be guided by the principles of natural justice and subject to the other
  
  provisions of this Act and of any rules made by the Central Government, the
  
  Tribunal shall have power to regulate its own procedure including the fixing of
  
  places and times of its inquiry and decided whether to sit in public or in
  
  private. 
  (2) A tribunal shall decide every application
  
  made to it as expeditiously as possible and ordinarily every application shall
  
  be decided on a perusal of documents and written representations and after hearing
  
  such oral arguments as may be advanced. 
  (3) A Tribunal shall have, for the purposes of
  
  discharging its functions under this Act, the same powers as are vested in a
  
  civil court under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908), while trying a
  
  suit, in respect of the following matters, namely : 
  (a) Summoning and
  
  enforcing the attendance of any person and examining him on oath; 
   (b) requiring the
  
  discovery and production of documents; 
   (c) receiving evidence
  
  on affidavits; 
  (d) subject to the provisions
  
  of section 123 and 124 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 (1 of 1872),
  
  requisitioning any public record or document or copy of such record or document
  
  from any office; 
   (e) issuing
  
  commissions for the examination of witnesses or, documents; 
   (f) reviewing its
  
  decisions; 
   (g) dismissing a
  
  representation for default or deciding it ex parte; 
  (h) setting aside any
  
  order of dismissal of any representation for default or any order passed by it
  
  ex parte; and 
   (i) any other matter
  
  which may be prescribed by the Central Government.