JUDGMENT

Shah, J.-Leave granted.

2. Heard learned counsel for the parties exhaustively.

3. The question involved in these appeals is-Whether High Court was justified in confirming the order passed by the Labour Court reinstating the respondents-workmen with 25% back wages inspite of specific finding of fact that the charges of breach of trust and misappropriate of goods for the value given in the said charges had been clearly established. Apparently, it would be an unjustified direction to reinstate an employee against whom charge of misappropriation is established. A proved act of misappropriation cannot be taken lightly even though number of such misappropriation cases remain undisclosed and such employees or others amass wealth by such means. In any case, misappropriation cannot be rewarded or legalised by reinstatement in service with full or part of back wages.

4. The matrix of the facts as culled out from the case are that-the appellant is a Co-operative Society registered under the Karnataka Co-operative Societies Act, 1959. The Management charged four of its employees, namely Smt. Seetha B., Sri D. Chandrashekhar, Sri Madhukar Shetty and Sri B. Damodhar Naik, with breach of tru