Employees' State Insurance Act, 1948

The Supreme Court examined whether race clubs such as the Bangalore Turf Club and the Royal Western India Turf Club, as well as a chit fund, fall within the definition of "shop" under the Employees' State Insurance Act, 1948 (ESI Act) and the related notifications. The Court held that a race club is an "establishment" …

The Supreme Court examined whether casual workers employed by Royal Western India Turf Club Ltd. on race days fell within the definition of "employee" under Section 2(9) of the Employees' State Insurance Act, 1948, and consequently whether the club was liable to pay ESI contributions from the 1978-79 period. Relying on…

The New Mangalore Port Listed Workers Managing Committee was created in 1983 to provide stevedores for loading and unloading cargo at the New Mangalore Port Trust (NMPT) and was dissolved on 15 March 1990 when its workers were absorbed into NMPT as a cargo‑handling wing. The Committee challenged a Karnataka State Gover…

The Delhi Gymkhana Club Ltd., a members' club with a kitchen and catering division employing more than twenty workers, was held by the Employees' State Insurance Corporation to be covered under the Employees' State Insurance Act, 1948 and was ordered to pay contributions for the period 1980-1985. The club challenged th…

Shahu Sampatrao Jadhavar, a night watchman, died in a road accident on 22 April 2003 while commuting 5 km to his sugar factory workplace. His family claimed compensation under the Employees' Compensation Act, 1923, but the employer and insurer argued the accident did not arise out of or in the course of employment beca…

The claimants, legal heirs of a government employee who died in a motor accident, were awarded Rs.37,85,800 compensation by the Motor Accident Claims Tribunal. The insurer, New India Assurance Co., appealed seeking deduction of the financial assistance payable under the Haryana Compensation Assistance Rules, 2006, whil…

The Gujarat Transport Department floated a tender for manpower services with conditions that the salary paid must not be less than the minimum wage and that bids must be fixed, not open‑ended. Three bidders qualified; the Technical Evaluation Committee fixed a minimum‑wage figure of Rs 3,00,92,346, rendering the bids o…

The Supreme Court examined whether two cooperative milk producer societies were liable to pay Employees' State Insurance (ESI) contributions for workers employed by contractors to transport milk. The societies argued that the contractors' workers were neither directly employed by them nor worked on their premises or un…

The appellant, Horticulture Experiment Station Gonikoppal, failed to deposit EPF contributions for the period 1975‑1988 and was assessed damages under Section 14B of the Employees Provident Fund & Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952. The appellant argued that mens rea or actus reus should be required before imposing suc…

The petitioners, junior resident doctors employed on a contractual bond in ESIC medical colleges, sought inclusion in the 50% "in‑service" reservation for postgraduate medical seats that is available to Insurance Medical Officers Grade‑II (IMO‑II) recruited permanently by ESIC. They argued that both categories possess …

The Employees' State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) sought contribution from Mangalam Publications, a private limited company, for interim relief payments made to its employees between April 1996 and March 2000. The company argued that the interim relief was an ex‑gratia payment, not "wages" under Section 2(22) of the Em…

The ESI Corporation issued demand notices to M/s Radhika Theatre for ESI contributions after the theatre stopped paying contributions in 1989, arguing that the amendment to Section 1(6) of the Employees' State Insurance Act, 1948 (effective 20 Oct 1989) made every establishment liable irrespective of employee count. Th…

The Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) appealed against a Karnataka High Court order that had upheld promotions of its teaching staff under the Dynamic Assured Career Progression (DACP) Scheme. The respondents, who joined ESIC as Assistant Professors between February 2014 and June 2016, claimed promotion to …

The Employees' State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) appealed against a Guwahati High Court order that held its 21 July 1999 notification under Section 1(3) of the Employees' State Insurance Act, 1948, applied only to areas within the Silchar Municipal Corporation, thereby excluding the respondent M/s Key Dee Cold Storage…

The Supreme Court heard a writ petition filed by the National Campaign Committee for Central Legislation on Construction Labour (NCC‑CL) seeking effective implementation of the Building and Other Construction Workers (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1996 (BOCW Act) and the Building and Other Co…

The deceased employee, Ambadas Lahane, died while on duty and his legal heirs claimed compensation under the Workmen's Compensation Act, 1923. The employer contended that the employee was an "insured person" under the Employees' State Insurance Act, 1948, and therefore barred from any claim under the 1923 Act pursuant …

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) was held by the Employees' State Insurance (ESI) Court and the Bombay High Court to be a "shop" under the Employees State Insurance Act, 1948, making it liable to contribute to the ESI fund. BCCI challenged this classification, arguing that its primary purpose is the pro…

The appellant, Adiraj Manpower Services Pvt. Ltd., a manpower recruitment agency, entered into agreements with Sigma Electric Manufacturing to supply personnel for various manufacturing activities. The Commissioner of Central Excise issued a show‑cause notice alleging that the appellant had failed to assess and pay ser…

The appellant, Ajay Raj Shetty, who was employed as General Manager/Technical Coordinator of M/s Electriex (India) Ltd., was convicted under Section 85(i)(b) of the Employees' State Insurance Act, 1948 for failing to remit ESI contributions that had been deducted from employees' wages. The issue before the Supreme Cour…

The appellants, including Checkmate Services Pvt. Ltd., deposited employees' EPF and ESI contributions after the statutory due dates and claimed deductions under s.36(1)(va) of the Income Tax Act, 1961. The Assessing Officer disallowed the deduction, holding that the amounts constituted "income" under s.2(24)(x) and we…

The appellant, father of a deceased employee, claimed compensation under the Employees' Compensation Act, 1923 after the employee died in a road accident while returning from a field assignment. The Commissioner and the High Court dismissed the claim, holding the accident was not "arising out of and in the course of em…

The Employees State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) inspected Texmo Industries and found that the company had underpaid ESI contributions by including conveyance allowance in the wage base. Texmo contested, arguing that conveyance allowance is not "wages" under Section 2(22) of the Employees' State Insurance Act, 1948. Th…

The Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) observed that Venus Alloy Pvt. Ltd., though covered under the Employees’ State Insurance Act, 1948, had not paid ESI contributions on the remuneration paid to its directors. ESIC issued an order on 6 April 2005 directing the company to make the contribution, which the c…

The appellant sought to enforce an auction sale of a plot in Kanpur that had been conducted to recover land revenue under the Employees State Insurance Act, 1948. The auction was held a day after notice, the successful bidder deposited the required 25% by cheque and later by bank draft, both of which were rejected, and…

The case concerned whether M/s Endocrinology and Immunology Lab, a pathological laboratory, fell within the ambit of the Employees' State Insurance Act, 1948 and, if so, from which date. The High Court had held that the lab was covered from 6 September 2007 under a Kerala government notification that extended the Act t…

Zuari Cement Ltd. had previously obtained exemption from the Employees State Insurance (ESI) scheme under Section 87 of the Employees State Insurance Act, 1948 for 1986‑1993, but its application for renewal for 1993‑2001 was rejected, leading to demand notices for contributions. The High Court directed the company to a…

The case concerned a tea estate (Mathura Tea Estate) that defaulted on EPF contributions. After the estate was taken over by Eveready Industries (later McLeod Russel India Ltd.), the new management argued it was not the "employer" liable for damages under Section 148 of the Employees' Provident Funds and Miscellaneous …