Judgment

HIDAYATULLAH, J.: This is an appeal by special leave from the Award of the National Industrial Tribunal (Bank Disputes) Bombay, in a dispute between the Reserve Bank of India and its workmen, delivered on September 8, 1962 and published in the Gazette of India (Extraordinary) of September 29, 1962. The appellants are the All Indian Reserve Bank Employees Association, Bombay (Shortly the Association) representing Class II and Class III staff and the All India Reserve Bank "D" Class Employees Union, Kanpur (shortly the Union) representing Class IV staff, of the Reserve Bank.

2. By notification No. S. O. 704, dated the 21st March 1960, the Central Government, in exercise of its powers under S. 7B of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, constituted a National Industrial Tribunal with Mr. Justice K. T. Desai (later Chief Justice of the Gujarat High Court) as the Presiding Officer. By an order notified under No. S.O. 707 of the same date, Central Government, in the exercise of the powers conferred by sub-s. (1A) of S. 10 of the Industrial Disputes Act, referred an industrial dispute, which , in its opinion, existed between the Reserve Bank and its workmen of the three classes above-mentioned. The order of Reference specified the heads of dispute in two schedules, the first in respect of Class II and Class III staff and the second in respect of Class IV staff. The first Schedule consisted of 22 items and the second of 23 items. These items (a considerable number of which are common to the two schedules) bear upon the scales of pay and dearness and other allowances and sundry matters connected with the conditions of service of the three classes. The reference was registered as Reference No. 2 of 1960. During the trial of the Reference the Association and the Union severally made applications for interim relief asking for 25 per cent of the total emoluments to Class IV employees with a minimum of Rs. 25 and for 25 per cent of the basic pay to the employees of the two higher classes, with effect from July 1959, but this was refused by an interim Award, dated December 29, 1960. The final Award was delivered on September 8, 1962 because in the meantime the Tribunal dealt with another reference registered as Reference No. 1 of 1960 in a dispute involving 84 banking companies and Corporations and their workmen in respect of creation of categories of banks and areas for purposes of adjudication and of scales of pay, diverse allowances and other conditions of service. The Award in that Reference was delivered on June 7,1962. The Tribunal was next occupied with the resolution of yet another dispute over bonus between 73 banking companies and their workmen which was registered as Reference No .3 of 1960 and which was concluded by an award on July 21, 1962. We shall have occasion to refer to these awards later. We may now give the facts of the dispute in the Reference from which this appeal arises.

3. The Reserve Bank was established on April 1, 1935 as shareholders Bank with a capital of Rs. 5 crores which was mainly subscribed by the public. It was taken over in 1948 by the Government of India, when, under the Reserve Bank (Transfer to Public Ownership) Act, 1948, the shares were compulsorily acquired by Government at a premium of Rs. 18.62 over and above the face value of the share of 100. Thereafter the Reserve Bank is administered by a Central Board of Directors nominated by the Central Government from the civil services and public men. There are four local Boards to advise the Central Board and to function as its delegates. The Head Office of the Reserve Bank is situated at Bombay with branches at Calcutta, New Delhi, Kanpur, Madras, Bangalore, Nagpur, Lucknow, Hyderabad, Gauhati, Trivandrum, Patna, Ahmedabad, Ludhiana, Jaipur and Indore. The Reserve Bank acts as Bank to the Central and State Governments and Commercial Banks and controls the issue and circulation of currency. It has special duties to perform under the Banking Compan