Judgment

Arijit Pasayat, J.—Challenge in these appeals is to the common judgment rendered by a Division Bench of the Gujarat High Court holding that the applications of the respondents before the Labour Court (Central) Ahmedabad, in terms of Section 33-C(2) of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 (in short ‘the Act’) were maintainable.

2. Background facts in a nutshell are as follows :

By a common judgment and order dated 4.5.2000 the Labour Court allowed the claims made by the respondents-workmen in the recovery applications filed under Section 33-C(2) of the Act in respect of certain claims of overtime allowance which according to them was payable in view of what is called as ‘on and off duty’ for taking out and bringing in locomotives from the shed as was required to be done for the purpose of operating them at and from different stations. Apart from questioning the legality of the claims preliminary objection to the maintainability of the applications under Section 33-C(2) of the Act was raised. The Labour Court, however, did not accept the same and held that the applications were maintainable, relying on certain earlier adjudications by the Labour Court and the High Court. Writ peti