Disposed

The Managing Director v. the State of Ap

Andhra Pradesh HC24 Mar 2023WP/7405/2023

Case brief

AI extract

What is this about?

The High Court disposed of three writ petitions filed calling for transfer of labour appeals from one officer to another. Instead of deciding the transfer, the court directed the Industrial Tribunal to dispose of the pending appeals within three months following incidents in court.

What did the court decide?

Directed the 4th respondent (Industrial Tribunal) to dispose of the appeals within three months of receipt of the order.

The Managing Director Vs the State of Ap — Service and Employment | Andhra Pradesh HC (2023)

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HONOURABLE SMT. JUSTICE V.SUJATHA WRIT PETITION Nos. 6639, 7402, 7405 of 2023

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COMMON ORDER :

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These Writ Petitions are filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India seeking the following relief:-

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W.P.No. 6639 of 2023

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“…to issue a Writ, direction or order more particularly one in the nature of writ of Mandamus declaring the action of the respondents 2 to 4 in not transferring proceedings bearing A.P.S.E No.1 of 2019 on the file of the Assistant Commissioner of Labour, Rajamahendravaram to the Assistant Commissioner of Labour, Kakinada as illegal, arbitrary, irrational and contrary to Article 19(1)(g) of Constitution of India and consequently to direct the respondents 2 to 4 to transfer the proceedings bearing A.P.S.E No.1 of 2019 pending before the 4^th respondent to the 5^th respondent.”

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W.P.No. 7402 of 2023

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Constitution of India and consequently to direct the respondents 2 to 4 to transfer the proceedings bearing A.P.S.E No.4 of 2019 pending before the 4^th respondent to the 5^th respondent.”

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W.P.No. 7405 of 2023

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“…to issue a Writ, direction or order more particularly one in the nature of writ of Mandamus declaring the action of the respondents 2 to 4 in not transferring proceedings bearing A.P.S.E No. 3 of 2019 on the file of the Assistant Commissioner of Labour, Rajamahendravaram to the Assistant Commissioner of Labour, Kakinada as illegal, arbitrary, irrational and contrary to Article 19(1)(g) of Constitution of India and consequently to direct the respondents 2 to 4 to transfer the proceedings bearing A.P.S.E No.3 of 2019 pending before the 4^th respondent to the 5^th respondent.”

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As the issue involved in these three writ petitions is one

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and the same, this court deems it appropriate to dispose of these three writ petitions by a common order.

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The petitioner/Hotel Anand Residency is running hotel business with lodging and boarding facilities at Rajamahendravaram, which is part of M/s Manoharamma Hotel Investments Private Limited and is a company incorporated under the Companies Act on 10.05.1991. During the month of December,2018 the 6^th respondent, who

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is working as waiter and five (5) other employees, colluding with the workers belonging to Asara Union, started agitation against the petitioner agency by demanding more wages.

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While the issue is under consideration by the Management, the 6^th respondent in these three cases absented from duties. Therefore, 6^th respondent in these three cases were terminated from their services and the dispute was carried to the Additional Commissioner of Labour, Vijayawada, who referred the same to the Industrial Tribunal-cum-Labour Court, Visakhapatnam vide proceedings No. F/2493/2020 dated 31.01.2020, which was numbered as I.D.No. 40 of 2022. Pending the said ID, the 6^th respondent in these three cases have filed A.P.S.E Nos. 1, 4 and 3 of 2019 respectively, before the Hon’ble Assistant Commissioner of Labour, Rajamahendravaram, by invoking Section 48 of A.P. Shops and Establishments Act.

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It is further case of the petitioner agency that when the learned counsel for the petitioner Agency was representing before the 4^th respondent, the learned counsels for the 6^th respondent in these cases accompanied with some other persons threatened the learned counsel for the

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petitioner/Agency and not allowed him to proceed with the arguments in the Court and interfered with the court proceedings.

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The grievance of the petitioner/Agency is that though the petitioner agency has complained the same before the 4^th respondent on many occasions, the 4^th respondent has not acted upon it, and therefore, requested to transfer the present A.P.S.E Nos. 1, 3 and 4 of 2019 from the file of Assistant Commissioner of Labour, Rajamahendravaram to the Assistant Commissioner of Labour, Kakinada, while relying upon Section 48 of the A.P. Shops and Establishment Act 1988, which is extracted below.

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Appointment of authority to hear and decide appeals arising out of termination of services. –

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(1) (a) The Chief Inspector may, by notification, appoint for any area as may be specified therein, any authority to hear and decide appeals arising out of the termination of service of employees under section 47:

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Provided that the Chief Inspector may on administrative grounds transfer any appeal arising in the territorial jurisdiction of any authority to the file of another authority for disposal, and such authority to whom the appeal is transferred by the Chief Inspector shall dispose of the appeal so transferred.

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(b) Any employee whose services have been terminated may appeal to the authority concerned within such time and in such manner as may be prescribed.

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(2) The appellate authority may, after inquiry in the prescribed manner, dismiss the appeal or direct the reinstatement of the employee with or without wages for the period he was kept out of employment or direct payment of compensation without reinstatement or grant such other relief as it deems fit in the circumstances of the case:

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Provided that the authority concerned shall, without delay, hear such appeal and pass such orders within a period of three months from the date of receipt of such appeal:

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Provided further that where any such authority considers it necessary or expedient so to do, it may, for reasons to be recorded in writing, extend such period by such further period as it may think fit; Provided also that no proceedings before such authority shall lapse merely on the grounds that any period specified in this sub-section had expired without such proceedings being completed.

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(3) Against any decision of the authority under sub-section (2), a second appeal shall lie to such authority as may be notified by the Government within thirty days from the date of communication of the decision and the decision of such authority on such appeal shall be final and binding on both the employer and the employee and shall be given effect to within such time as may be specified in the order of that Authority:

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Provided that the second appeal shall not be entertained unless the employer deposits the entire amount of back wages as ordered by the appellate authority under sub-section (2) or the amount of compensation ordered as the case may be:

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Provided further that if the second appeal is against the order of reinstatement given by the appellate authority under sub-

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section (2), the employee shall be entitled to wages last drawn by him during the pendency of the proceedings before the appellate authority.

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(4) Where in any case, an appellate authority by its award directs reinstatement of any employee and the employer challenges such award in any Court of Law, the employer shall be liable to pay such employee during the pendency of such proceedings, full wages last drawn by him, if the employee had not been employed in any establishment during such period and an affidavit by such employee had been filed to that effect in such Court:

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Provided that where it is proved to the satisfaction of the Court that such employee has been employed and has been receiving remuneration during any such period or part thereof the Court shall order that no wage shall be payable under this section for such period or part, as the case may be.

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(5) Any amount directed to be paid under this section may be recovered –

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(a) if the authority appointed under sub-section (1) is a Magistrate, by the authority, as if it were a fine imposed by him as Magistrate ; and

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(b) if the authority is not a Magistrate, by any Magistrate, to whom the authority makes application in this behalf as if it were a fine imposed by such Magistrate.

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As per Section 48, the Chief Inspector, on

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administrative grounds, may transfer any appeal arising in the territorial jurisdiction of any authority to the file of another authority for disposal, and such authority to whom the appeal is transferred by the Chief Inspector shall dispose

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of the appeal so transferred, if at all there are any criminal proceedings initiated against the 6^th respondent in all the three (3) cases.

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During the course of hearing, learned counsel for the petitioner/Agency has reiterated the facts mentioned in these three writ petitions and requested to pass appropriate orders.

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Leaned Government Pleader for Labour has produced a copy of the instructions of the 4^th respondent vide R.C.No. A/316/2023 dated 17.03.2023, stating that on 27.09.2022, while the applicants in the batch of cases i.e., A.P.S.E Nos.1 to 6 of 2022 were representing certain issues to the 4^th respondent authority, the counsel of Opposite Parties has directly entered into arguments with the applicants, which has become the cause of incident and further stated that the junior counsel should have either urged before the 4^th respondent authority or asked the applicants’ counsel, who was present at that time, but, he has exchanged his arguments directly with the workers and invited the trouble, which was unwarranted. However, it is submitted that none has threatened the junior counsel, before the 4^th respondent

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authority, at any point of time and the 4^th respondent has only warned both the parties not to resort to such arguments in the court and calmed up the issue.

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In view of the same, instead of going into the merits, this court feels it appropriate to dispose of these three (3) writ petitions by directing the 4^th respondent to dispose of the appeals as early as possible, preferably within a period of three months from the date of receipt of a copy of this order.

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11 Accordingly, these writ petitions are disposed of. There shall be no orders as to costs.

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As a sequel, miscellaneous applications, pending, if any, shall also stand closed.

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JUSTICE V.SUJATHA

Date : 24.03.2023

PSR/KBS

199

HONOURABLE SMT. JUSTICE V.SUJATHA

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(Disposed of)

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WRIT PETITION No.6639, 7402 and 7405 OF 2023

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Date: 24.03.2023

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PSR/KBS

The Managing Director v. the State of Ap

Case brief

What is this about?

What did the court decide?

The Managing Director v. the State of Ap

Case brief

What is this about?

What did the court decide?

What the court decided

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