Holding

Article 134A is ancillary to Articles 132, 133 and 134, and a certificate of fitness cannot be issued by a Single Judge where clause 3 of Article 133 bars such an appeal; therefore the certificate is revoked.

Summary

The employees of the State Bank of India challenged the management's authority to fix work hours and recess periods in a writ petition before the High Court. A Single Judge of the High Court allowed the petition and, relying on a prior Division Bench order, issued a certificate of fitness under Article 134A for appeal to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court examined whether Article 134A is an independent provision or merely ancillary to Articles 132, 133, and 134, and whether the conditions for a certificate were satisfied. It held that the case could only fall under Article 133(1) and that clause 3 of Article 133 bars appeals from judgments of a single High Court judge unless Parliament provides otherwise. Consequently, the certificate issued by the Single Judge was revoked, and the appeal was ordered to be treated as a Special Leave Petition under Article 136 and posted for a preliminary hearing.

Issues considered

Whether Article 134A of the Constitution is an independent provision allowing a High Court to issue a certificate of fitness for appeal.
Whether a Single Judge of a High Court can issue a certificate of fitness under Article 134A when a Division Bench had earlier issued a similar certificate in a related case.
Whether the conditions prescribed in Articles 132, 133, and 134 are satisfied in the present matter.
Whether clause 3 of Article 133 precludes an appeal from a judgment rendered by a Single Judge of a High Court.

Legislation cited

Constitution of Indias. Article 132, s. Article 133, s. Article 134, s. Article 134A, s. Article 136

Subjects

Article 134Acertificate of fitnessappeal to Supreme Courtsingle judgedivision benchconstitutional interpretationhigh court jurisdictionspecial leave petition

Judgment

STATE BANK OF INDIA & ANR.
i v.
A
S.B.I EMPLOYEES UNION & ANR.

SEPTEMBER 15, 1987

[E.S. VENKATARAMIAH AND K.N. SINGH, JJ.] B

y
Constitution of India, 1950: Article 134A-Certificate for leave

-
• )
to appeal-Issuance of-Conditions to be satisfied-Whether Single
Judge empowered to issue such Certificate on ground that Division
Bench issued Certificate in similar case.
c
/-\ The employees of the State Bank of India filed· a writ petition in
).
the High Court, questioning the right of the management to fix the
hours of work and of recess and its right to stagger the period of recess,
and for other consequential reliefs.
D
A Single Judge of the High Court allowed the petition, following
earlier decisions by the Division Bench of the same High Court, and also
granted a certificate of fitness under Article 134A of the Constitution to
file an appeal in the Supreme Court, following an earlier order of a
-1 Division Bench granting such a certificate in respect of one of those
E
earlier decisions.

- Revoking the certificate, this Court,

HELD: The certificate contemplated under Article 134A of the
Constitution can only be a certificate which is referred to in cl. (l) of F
Article 132 or in cl. (l) of Article 133 or in sub-clause (c) of cl. (l) of
-\
\._ Article 134 of the Constitution. Article 134A does not constitute an
independent provision under which a certificate can be issued. It is
ancilliary to Articles 132(1), 133(1) and 134(l)(c). [lSSE]

The High Court can issue a certificate only when it is satisfied that G
the conditions in Article 132 or Article 133 or Article 134, as the case
may be, are satisfied. [IS6F]
;.
The instant case does not fall either under Article 132(1) or under
sub-clause(c) of Article 134( 1) as it neither involves a substantial ques-
tion of law as to the interpretation of the Constitution nor is it a crimi· H

153
154 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [1988] 1 S.C.R.

A nal proceeding. It can only fall, if at all, under Article 133(1) and, +
therefore, the certificate could not have been issued by reason of cl.(3)
of Article 133 of the Constitution. [lSSE·Fl

The fact that in a similar case a certificate had been issued by a
Division Bench of the High Court did not empower the Single Judge to
B issue the certificate under Article 133(1) in a case decided by him. The
restriction placed by cl. (3) of Article 133 could not be got over by
relying upon the order of the Division Bench. [156G·Hl 'f
The petition of appeal to be treated as Special Leave Petition
under Article 136 of the Constitution and posted for preliminary
C hearing. [157A]
•
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION: Civil Miscellaneous 1,
Petition No. 19065 of 1987. -1-

IN
D
Civil Appeal No. 1713of1987.

From the Judgment and Order dated 11.6.1987 in Writ Petition
No. 389 of 1981.

E F.D. Damania, Atul Tewari and Ms. Bina Gupta for the
petitioners.

F
The following Order of the Court was delivered:

ORDER

The certificate on the basis of which this appeal is filed is issued }-
-
by a learned Single Judge of the High Court of Bombay under Article
134A of the Constitution in respect of an order passed by him in a Writ
Petition in which the employees of the State Bank of India had ques-
tioned the right of the management to fix the hours of work and the
G hours of recess and its right to stagger the period of recess and had
prayed for other consequential reliefs. The learned Single Judge
allowed the petition following certain earlier decisions of the High
Court rendered by the Division Benches. He however proceeded to +·
grant a certificate of fitness to file an appeal against his decision before
this Court following an earlier order of a Division Bench granting such
H a certificate in respect of one of those earlier decisions. He issued the
S.B.J. v. S.B.I. EMPLOYEES UNION 155

certificate under Article 134A of the Constitution without referring to
i A
the Article under which the appeal could be filed. Article 134A of the
Constitution reads thus:

"134A. Every High Court, passing or making a judg·
ment, decree, final order, or sentence, referred to in clause
( 1) of article 132 or clause (1) of article 133, or clause (1) of B
article 134,-

(a) may, if it deems fit so to do, on its own motion;
and
(

(b) shall, if an oral application is made, by or on
' behalf of the party aggrieved, immediately after the passing c
) or making of such judgment, decree, final order or
/J.
sentence,

determine, as soon as may be after such passing or making,
the question whether a certificate of the nature referred to D
in clause ( 1) of article 132, or clause ( 1) of article 133 or, as
the case may be, sub-clause (c) of clause (1) of article 134,
may be given in respect of that case."

The certificate contemplated under Article 134A of the Constitu-
-j tion can only be a certificate which is referred to in clause (1) of Article E
132 or in clause (1) of Article 133 or in sub-clause (c) of clause (1) of
Article 134 of the Constitution. This is quite obvious from the
language of Article 134A of the Constitution. This case does not fall
either under Article 132(1) or under sub-clause (c) of Article 134( 1) as
it neither involves a substantial question of law as to the interpretation
of the Constitution nor it is a criminal proceeding. It can only fall, i_f at F
all, under Article 133( 1) of the Constitution. Article 133 of the Con·
\ stitution reads thus:

"133. (1) An appeal shall lie to the Supreme Court
from any judgment, decree or final order in a civil proceed·
ing of a High Court in the territory of India if the High G
Court certifies under Article 134A-

j
(a) that the case involves a substantial question of
law of general importance; and

(b) that in the opinion of the High Court the said H
156 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [ 1988] 1 S.C.R.

question needs to be decided by the Supreme Court.
A +
(2) Notwithstanding anything in article 132, any
party appealing to the Supreme Court under clause ( 1) may
urge as one of the grounds in such appeal that a substantial
question of law as to the interpretation of this Constitution
B has been wrongly decided.

(3) Notwithstanding anything in this article, no
appeal shall, unless Parliament by law otherwise provides,
lie to the Supreme Court from the judgment, decree or
final order of one Judge of a High Court."
c Clause (3) of Article 133 says that notwithstanding anything in
that Article no appeal shall unless Parliament by law. otherwise pro-
vides lie to the Supreme Court from the judgment, decree or final
order of one Judge of the High Court. Before the introduction of
Article 134A of the Constitution by the Forty-fourth Amendment of
D the Constitution there was no express provision in Articles 132, 133
and 134 of the Constitution regarding the time and manner in which an
application for a certificate under any of those articles could be made
before the High Court. There was also a doubt as to the power of the
High Court to issue a certificate suo motu under any of those articles.
Article 134A was enacted to make good the said deficiencies. Article
E 134A does not constitute an independent provision under which a
certificate can be issued. It is ancillary to Article 132(1), Article 133(1)
and Article 134( 1)( c) of the Constitution. That is the reason for the use
of words "if the High Court certifies under article 134A" in Article
132( 1) and Article 133( 1) and for the use of words "certifies under
article 134A" in Article 134(1)(c). The High Court can issue a certifi-
F cate only when it is satisfied that the conditions in Article 132 or
Article 133 or Article 134 of the Constitution as the case may be are
satisfied. In the instant case such a certificate could not have been
issued by reason of clause (3) of Article 133 of the Constitution by the
learned Single Judge.

G The fact that in a similar case a certificate had been issued by a
Division Bench of the High Court consisting of two Judges in a case
decided by the Division Bench did not empower the SinglE Judge to
issue the certificate under Article 133( 1) of the Constitution in a case
decided by him. The restriction placed by clause (3) of Article 133 of
the Constitution could not be got over by relying upon the order of the
H Division Bench.
S.B.I. v. S.B.I. EMPLOYEES UNION 157

We, therefore, revoke the certificate. This petition of appeal A
may, however, be treated as a Special Leave Petition under Article 136
of the Constitution and posted for preliminary hearing.

N.P.V.
B

)

\