The Christian Medical College Society Vs Employees Provident Fund Appeallate Trib — Punjab & Haryana HC (2025) — LawSathi Research

The Christian Medical College Society Vs Employees Provident Fund Appeallate Trib — Punjab & Haryana HC (2025) — LawSathi Research

What the court decided

AI extract

Outcome

Impugned orders of the EPF Appellate Tribunal set aside; both cases remanded to the Appellate Tribunal for fresh adjudication keeping in view the order dated 17.03.2025 in CWP-3985-2017; parties directed to appear before the Tribunal on 18.08.2025; pending civil miscellaneous applications, if any, disposed of.

Issue for consideration

Whether the impugned awards/orders of the Employees Provident Fund Appellate Tribunal (reduction of penalty to the tune of 40%, and absence of complete waiver of penalty) should be set aside and the present petitions likewise remanded to the Appellate Tribunal for fresh adjudication in line with this Court's order dated 17.03.2025 in CWP-3985-2017.

Court's answer

The impugned orders in the respective petitions are set aside and the cases are remanded back to the Appellate Tribunal for fresh adjudication keeping in view the detailed reasons given in this Court's order dated 17.03.2025 in CWP-3985-2017 (Employees Provident Fund Organization and another vs. Punjab State Co-operative Supply and Marketing Federation Ltd. and another).

Ratio / Principle

Parties are directed to appear before the Tribunal on 18.08.2025.

Key takeaways

Present petitions are disposed of accordingly, and any civil miscellaneous application pending, if any, is also disposed of.ratio¶6

Detailed headnote1 paragraphs

High Court of Punjab and Haryana at Chandigarh (Harsimran Singh Sethi, J., oral order dated 21.07.2025) disposed of two connected writ petitions: CWP-4081-2005 (The Christian Medical College Society vs. The Employees Provident Fund Appellate Tribunal and others), contesting the Tribunal's refusal to grant complete waiver of penalty, and CWP-17623-2006 (Employees’ Provident Fund Organization vs. M/s The Christian Medical College & Hospital, Ludhiana and another), contesting the Tribunal's reduction of the penalty to the tune of 40%. Counsel submitted that a similar Tribunal award had already been dealt with by this Court in CWP-3985-2017 (EPFO and another vs. Punjab State Co-operative Supply and Marketing Federation Ltd. and another, with connected cases), where the law was considered and the cases remanded to the Appellate Tribunal. Accordingly, the Court set aside the impugned orders in both petitions and remanded the cases to the Appellate Tribunal for fresh adjudication keeping in view the detailed reasons of the 17.03.2025 order; parties to appear before the Tribunal on 18.08.2025; pending civil miscellaneous applications, if any, disposed of. Marked speaking/reasoned: Yes; reportable: No.

CWP-4081-2005(O&M) -1CWP-17623-2006 (O&M)

IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH

210 CWP-4081-2005(O&M) Date of Decision :21.07.2025

The Christian Medical College Society ...Petitioner

Versus

The Employees Provident Fund Appellate Tribunal and others ...Respondents

CWP-17623-2006 (O&M)

Employees’ Provident Fund Organization ...Petitioner

Versus

M/s The Christian Medical College & Hospital, Ludhiana and another ...Respondents

CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE HARSIMRAN SINGH SETHI

Present: Mr. Shiv Kumar, Advocate for the petitioner in CWP-4081-2005 & for respondent No.1 in CWP-17623-2006.

Mr. Rajesh Hooda, Advocate for the petitioner in CWP-17623-2006 and for respondent No.2. in CWP-4081-2005.

Harsimran Singh Sethi, J. (Oral)

The present petitions have been filed by the Employees Provident Fund Organization against the award challenging the reduction of

the penalty to the tune of 40% as well as by Christian Medical College AARTI SHARMA 2025.07.23 17:44 I attest to the accuracy and integrity of this document

CWP-4081-2005(O&M) -2CWP-17623-2006 (O&M)

Society on the ground that complete waiver of penalty has not been awarded by the Tribunal.

Learned counsel for the petitioner(s) submits that the similar award of reduction in the penalty imposed passed by the Tribunal was challenged by the Employees Provident Fund Organization by filing a writ petition, which writ petition was decided by this Court while passing order in CWP-3985-2017 titled as Employees Provident Fund Organization and

another vs. Punjab State Co-operative Supply and Marketing Federation

Ltd. and another along with connected cases, on 17.03.2025 after considering the law on the issue and the cases have been remanded back to the Appellate Tribunal hence, the present petitions be also remanded back to the Appellate Tribunal keeping in view the detailed reasons given in the said judgment.

Learned counsel for the respondent-Organization has not been able to dispute the said factual position.

Keeping in view the above, the impugned orders in the respective petitions are set aside and the cases are remanded back to the Appellate Tribunal for fresh adjudication keeping in view the detailed reasons given in the order passed by this Court in CWP-3985-2017 titled as Employees Provident Fund Organization and another vs. Punjab State Co-

operative Supply and Marketing Federation Ltd. and another along with connected cases, on 17.03.2025.

Parties are directed to appear before the Tribunal on 18.08.2025.

AARTI SHARMA 2025.07.23 17:44 I attest to the accuracy and integrity of this document

CWP-4081-2005(O&M) CWP-17623-2006 (O&M)

-3-

Present petitions are disposed of accordingly.

A photocopy of this order be placed on the file of connected

case.

Civil miscellaneous application pending, if any, is also disposed

of.

July 21, 2025 aarti

(HARSIMRAN SINGH SETHI) JUDGE Whether speaking/reasoned : Yes Whether reportable : No

AARTI SHARMA 2025.07.23 17:44 I attest to the accuracy and integrity of this document