Judgment

O. CHINNAPPA REDDY, J.

(1) THE services of ten clerks working in the Octroi S. of the Gram Panchayat of Dhari were terminated by notices dated 25/09/1967 with effect from 1/11/1967. An industrial dispute was referred by the government of Gujarat to the Special Labour court. By an award dated 13/11/1968, the Special Labour court directed the reabsorption of the ten clerks in future vacancies. The workmen filed a writ petition in the High court of Gujarat. By a consent order dated 18/06/1969 made in the writ petition, the ten workmen were directed to be reinstated and an amount equivalent to two-thirds of their back wages was also directed to be paid to them. The workmen were reinstated on 1/07/1969. But later on, the same day, they were retrenched from service. The workmen questioned the retrenchment and the dispute was once again referred for adjudication to the Special Labour court. This time an objection was raised by the Gram Panchayat that the Octroi Department of the Panchayat was not an industry within the meaning of S. 2(j) of the Industrial Disputes Act. The Labour court found on merits that the action of the Panchayat was mala fide but all the same held that