Industrial Disputes Act

Jasbir Singh, a peon employed by Punjab & Sind Bank, was accused of embezzling Rs 25,000, forging a depositor's signature and tampering with bank records. He faced a criminal trial under IPC §§ 409 and 201 and was acquitted, and a civil recovery suit filed by the bank was also decided in his favour, the judgment attain…

The respondent, a UCO Bank officer, was asked to show cause for disciplinary action just before his superannuation and a disciplinary proceeding was said to be initiated, but a charge sheet was only issued two years later. The bank dismissed him and the respondent challenged the dismissal. The Supreme Court examined wh…

The case concerned daily‑rated (casual) workers at Marathwada Agricultural University who claimed that, because their qualifications, duties and responsibilities were identical to those of permanent staff, they were entitled to the same wages. The Bombay High Court held that the university was exploiting the workers an…

The Supreme Court examined a dispute over the special allowance payable to "cashier in charge of cash" in Regional Rural Banks (RRBs). The National Industrial Tribunal had awarded parity with sponsor banks but did not base its decision on functional equivalence or the doctrine of equal pay for equal work. The Court hel…

J.K. Synthetics Ltd filed a refund claim that was rejected, appealed and the appeal was allowed by the Collector (Customs). The Collector of Central Excise then appealed before the Customs, Excise and Gold (Control) Appellate Tribunal (CEGAT). At the hearing on 31 August 1987 the appellant was absent, and CEGAT heard t…

The Hydro‑Electric Employees Union and other petitioners challenged the U.P. State Electricity Board’s decision to amalgamate the posts of Meter Readers, Sub‑Station Operators and Switch Board Attendants into a single cadre and the regulation framed under Section 79(c) of the Electricity Supply Act, 1948. The Board arg…

The petitioners, officers of the sick public sector undertakings Fertilizer Corporation of India (FCI) and Hindustan Fertilizer Corporation (HFC), challenged two Government memoranda that denied pay‑scale revision for employees of units referred to BIFR and that provided no budgetary support for such revisions. They ar…

The employee, Chhota Birsa Uranw, joined Bharat Coking Coal Ltd. in 1973 with a date of birth recorded as 15‑Feb‑1947. He later discovered that his school leaving certificate and Mining Sardarship certificate recorded his birth as 6‑Feb‑1950 and sought correction under Implementation Instruction No. 76 in 1987. The emp…

The private unaided minority school St. Mary's Education Society terminated the services of its non‑teaching employee, Rajendra Prasad Bhargava, after a disciplinary enquiry. Bhargava filed a writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution seeking to set aside the termination and the disciplinary committee's order.…

The Uttar Pradesh Avas Evam Vikas Parishad issued a notification under Section 28 of the 1965 Adhiniyam on 7 June 1982 and later obtained Government approval on 24 August 1982, followed by a declaration under Section 32 on 28 February 1987. Friends Cooperative Housing Society filed a writ petition contending that the n…

The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation regularly engaged Dr. V. K. Jayantibhai Patel on a daily fee basis to cover for its dental surgeons on leave. When permanent dental surgeon posts were advertised, Patel applied but was not selected, and he claimed permanent status based on 1,034 days of service, invoking an Industria…

Gowramma C, a staff nurse employed by Hindustan Aeronautical Ltd., was dismissed after a Tahasildar declared her caste certificate false, leading to loss of employment. The High Court initially upheld the dismissal, but a Division Bench later held the Tahasildar incompetent and directed verification by the Bangalore Di…

The petitioners were drivers in Haryana Roadways who were retired after being declared medically unfit for heavy‑vehicle driving due to eyesight defects. They sought a writ directing the State to appoint one of their sons to a suitable post. The High Court granted the writ, but the State appealed, relying on Government…

Six lab assistants employed on daily wages at a private college filed a writ petition under Article 226 seeking equal pay with government employees, invoking Article 39(d) and executive instructions. The High Court dismissed the petition, and the matter reached the Supreme Court on appeal. The Court examined whether a …

The petitioners, an employee of a private‑sector firm and a trade union, challenged the constitutional validity of clause 10‑C inserted by the Finance Act, 1987 into section 10 of the Income‑Tax Act, 1961, which grants tax exemption on voluntary‑retirement payments only to employees of public‑sector companies. They arg…

The Tamil Nadu Industrial Establishments (Conferment of Permanent Status to Workmen) Act, 1981 provided that workmen with 480 days of continuous service in 24 months become permanent. The Madras High Court struck down the part of Section 3(2) that allowed a period of non‑employment or discharge of up to three months to…

The widow of a deceased casual labourer filed a claim for family pension, arguing that her husband should be deemed regularized on the date of his death. The Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) held that despite his temporary status under the Casual Labourers (Grant of Temporary Status and Regularisation) Scheme, 199…

The Transport & Dock Workers Union and two typist‑cum‑computer clerks challenged the Mumbai Port Trust’s policy of fixing longer daily working hours for clerks appointed after 1‑Nov‑1996, alleging discrimination and violation of Article 14 of the Constitution. The Trust argued that the differential hours were necessary…

Som Prakash Rekhi, a clerk of Burmah Shell Oil Storage Ltd., retired with a pension of Rs.165.99 per month under a 1950 trust deed and was also covered by the Employees Provident Fund Act, 1952 and the Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972. The employer deducted amounts for PF contributions and gratuity, reducing his pension t…

The respondent was appointed as Veterinary Compounder in the Central Cattle Breeding Farms in 1999 by the then Director In‑charge without obtaining prior written approval of the competent authority as required by the Central Cattle Breeding Farms (Class III and IV) Recruitment Rules, 1969. The Department later issued a…

The petitioners, contract labourers employed through various contractors at SAIL's Rourkela plant for 10‑20 years, filed a writ petition under Article 32 seeking parity in pay and absorption as regular employees, alleging that the contractor arrangement was a camouflage to deny them rights. The Supreme Court held that …

The Union of India sold a 51% stake in Bharat Aluminium Company Ltd (BALCO), a public sector undertaking, to Sterlite Industries, prompting challenges by the BALCO Employees Union, the State of Madhya Pradesh, and a public‑interest litigant. The petitioners argued that the disinvestment violated constitutional provisio…

The petition challenged the appointment of K.N. Srivastava as a Judge of the Gauhati High Court on the ground that he did not satisfy the qualifications under Article 217(2) of the Constitution. The Court examined the meaning of "judicial office" and held that it must be an office within the judicial service defined by…

The SCINDIA Employees Union challenged the acquisition of land on which its workshop stood, arguing that the acquisition for the expansion of a dockyard for defence purposes was not a public purpose and that the Union was a "person interested" under Section 3(d) of the Land Acquisition Act, 1894, entitled to notice and…

Mysore Paper Mills Ltd., a government company incorporated under the Companies Act, transferred a senior employee to Calcutta. The employee challenged the transfer as being vitiated by malafides and argued that the company was not a "State" within Article 12, thus the writ petition was not maintainable. The High Court …

The Central Bank of India had advanced a loan to Siriguppa Sugars & Chemicals Ltd. secured by a pledge of the company's sugar stock. The company defaulted, and the Recovery Authority seized the pledged sugar without the bank's consent, leading to its sale. The High Court, pending a writ appeal, ordered that portions of…

The Supreme Court considered appeals by the State Bank of India challenging a High Court order that set aside a staff circular which barred the bank from dealing with a non‑recognised officers' association. The petitioners argued that the circular violated Rule 24 of the Verification of Membership and Recognition of Tr…

Kirloskar Brothers Ltd., the principal employer, appealed against orders that reinstated six contract labourers (Ramcharan & others) and directed Kirloskar to absorb them as employees. The labour contract with the contractor (respondent No.7) had ended and the contractor dismissed the workers. The Supreme Court examine…

The Rajasthan Government created District Rural Development Agencies (DRDAs) as societies funded entirely by the State to implement various poverty‑alleviation schemes. Employees, including Class‑III and Class‑IV staff, were appointed on temporary six‑month contracts under the State Rural Development Agency Employees S…

The respondent, a clerk‑cum‑typist of State Bank of India, was caught copying in a bank‑conducted examination and subsequently lodged complaints against the senior officer who acted as invigilator. The bank discharged him on grounds of misconduct and prejudice to the bank's interests, a decision upheld by an Industrial…

The petitioners, about 300 catering cleaners employed by contractors on the Southern Railway, alleged that they were paid meagre wages and denied statutory benefits, and sought a writ of mandamus under Article 32 to compel the abolition of the contract‑labour system and their regularisation as railway employees. The Co…

The Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) appointed the respondents as Badli conductors, a day‑to‑day temporary position governed by the KSRTC Cadre and Recruitment Regulations, 1982. After repeated misconduct, the corporation terminated their services, removed them from the select list and forfeited any f…

The Supreme Court examined whether Prasar Bharati could transfer staff originally appointed by Doordarshan and Akashvani despite the absence of a formal deputation order under the Prasar Bharati Act, 1990. The Court observed that the employees had been working under the Corporation’s control, receiving its salary and o…

In 1966 the Jorehaut Tea Co. Ltd. retrenched 23 workmen; 16 received compensation calculated under s.25F of the Industrial Disputes Act and were selected according to the 'last come, first go' rule of s.25G, while the remaining seven were dismissed out of turn. The Industrial Tribunal upheld the retrenchment of the 16 …