The High Court dismissed the writ petition seeking to set aside a Labour Court award finding retrenchment illegal. The court held that the workman had cleared statutory requirements and was already reinstated, so no interference was warranted.
The writ petition was dismissed; the impugned Labour Court award was upheld.
This page shows the compact analysis of this judgement. The full analysis — procedural history, issue-by-issue holdings with ratio and obiter, advocates, and paragraph-level evidence for every claim — is being added to the record in batches and will appear here when this judgement has been through it.
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE FOR RAJASTHAN AT JODHPUR
S.B. Civil Writ Petition No.4566/1999 The Principal, Doongar College, Bikaner V/s. Shri Narpat Singh & Anr.
Date of Order
::: 08.01.2014
PRESENT
HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE P.K. LOHRA
Ms. Yogita Mohnani for Dr. P.S. Bhati, AAG, for the petitioner. Mr. R.S. Saluja and Mr. Bheemkant Vyas for the respondentworkman.
By the instant writ petition, the petitioner has called in question the impugned award dated 10th September, 1998 (Annex.5) passed by the Labour Court and Industrial Tribunal, Bikaner, whereby, while adjudicating the reference made by the appropriate Government, it has found that retrenchment of the respondent-workman is illegal and void. With these conclusions, the learned Labour Court has answered reference in favour of workman and ordered his reinstatement in the service the petitioner-employer with 25% back wages.
At the threshold when the matter came up before this Court, while issuing notices to the respondents, a Coordinate Bench of this Court has stayed the award to the extent it has granted back wages to the respondent-workman. Subsequently, the petition was admitted and the ad-interim stay to that extent was made absolute.
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It is stated at the Bar by the learned counsel appearing for the parties that the respondent-workman has already been reinstated and he is discharging his duties continuously.
Learned counsel for the parties are in agreement that the crucial question, which is involved in the matter, has already been thrashed out and settled by a Co-ordinate Bench of this Court in case of S.B. Civil Writ Petition No.3003/1998 – Principal Doongar College, Bikaner V/s. Om Prakash & Anr., decided on 8th September, 1998, wherein it was held that the petitioner-college is an industry and the respondent being class-IV employee of the Government college, run and maintained by the State Government, is a workman within the four corners of Section 2(S) of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947. The said verdict of the learned Single Judge has also been affirmed by the Division Bench of this Court in D.B. Civil Special Appeal (Writ) No.6/2000 – Principal, Dungar College, Bikaner V/s. Shri Om Prakash & Anr., decided on 13th January, 2000.
Having heard the learned counsel for the parties and perused the impugned award, I am satisfied that the learned Labour Court on appreciation of evidence and other materials available on record has rightly concluded that the respondent-workman has worked for 240 days in a calender year preceding the date of retrenchment and before retrenchment the mandatory requirements of Section 25-F
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have not been complied with by the petitioner-employer. That apart, a re-deeming feature of the case is that the respondent-workman has already been reinstated in the services and he is discharging his duties for a considerable period.
Learned counsel for the respondent-workman further submits that another incumbent, Om Prakash, who was reinstated in the services pursuant to the award passed by the Labour Court, has been regularised by the petitionerCollege.
In view of the above, I am not inclined to interfere with the impugned award passed by the learned Labour Court.
Resultantly, there is no force in the writ petition and the same is accordingly dismissed.
(P.K. LOHRA), J.
a.asopa/-
2 issues framed by the court
Whether the writ petition challenging the Labour Court award finding retrenchment illegal and ordering reinstatement is maintainable.
Whether the High Court should interfere with the award given that the workman has already been reinstated and is discharging duties.
Colour shows how this judgement treated each authority
Principal Doongar College, Bikaner V/s. Om Prakash & Anr.Explained¶12
S.B. Civil Writ Petition No.3003/1998 – Principal Doongar College, Bikaner V/s. Om Prakash & Anr.
Principal, Dungar College, Bikaner V/s. Shri Om Prakash & Anr.Affirmed¶12
D.B. Civil Special Appeal (Writ) No.6/2000 – Principal, Dungar College, Bikaner V/s. Shri Om Prakash & Anr.
2 provisions across 1 enactments
The Principal, Doongar College, Bikaner
Shri Narpat Singh & Anr.
P.K. LOHRA
As recorded by the court registry
Judgements on the same questions, provisions and authorities, from every court
