IMPORTANT POINTS
Labour court has jurisdiction to re-appreciate the facts and the evidence and is duty bound to examine validity of the enquiry findings.
Order of dismissal for partly proved misconduct of go-slow is disproportionate.
There is no infirmity in the High Court accepting concurrent findings of courts below, giving it valid and cogent reasons.
Authority imposing punishment of dismissal should give reasons as to why lesser punishment is not being imposed.

JUDGMENT

V. GOPALA GOWDA, J.

This appeal by special leave is directed against the impugned judgment and order dated 28.4.2009 passed by the High Court of judicature of Madhya Pradesh at Indore, in Writ Petition No. 2309 of 2009, whereby the High Court has affirmed the award dated 27.1.2009 passed by the Industrial Court, Indore in Civil Appeal No. 340/MPIR of 2007 which arises out of the Award dated 29.10.2007 passed by the Labour Court in Case No. 421/MPIR of 2001.

2. For the purpose of considering the rival legal contentions urged on behalf of the parties in this appeal and with a view to find out whether this Court is required to interfere with the impugned judgment and order of the High Court, the necessary facts are briefly stated hereunder:

The respondent was employed as a workman at the drug manufacturing unit of the appellant-Nicholas Piramal India Ltd. (for short “the Company”), situated at Pithampur, Madhya Pradesh. The Company issued two charge sheets dated 26.2.2000 and 13.3.2000 against him, alleging that he has violated and disregarded the orders of his senior officers and intentionally slowed down the work under process and made less production by adopting “go slow work” tactics which is a grave misconduct on the part of the respondent-workman under Clause 12(1)(d) of The M.P. Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Rules, 1963 (for short “the SSO”). The respondent denied the charges levelled against him by the appellant and submitted his reply to the charge-sheets. Not being satisfied with the same, the domestic enquiry proceedings were initiated by the disciplinary authority against him. In the domestic enquiry proceedings, the Inquiry Officer found the respondent-workman was guilty of the misconduct after holding that the charges levelled against him were proved which finding of fact is recorded by him in the enquiry report. The findings of the Inquiry Officer were accepted by the Disciplinary Authority of the appellant-Company and it served the second show cause notice on the respondent on 31.5.2001 along with the copy of the enquiry report, the same did not refer to any of his past service record. The respondent-workman submitted his written explanation to the second show cause notice, denying the findings of the Inquiry Officer by giving point wise reply to the findings of the enquiry report. On 30.7.2001 an order of dismissal was passed by the appellant-Company dismissing him from his service, after accepting the findings of the domestic Inquiry Officer in his report and not considering the reply of the respondent-workman to the said show cause notice.

3. Being aggrieved by the order of dismissal passed against the respondent-workman by the appellant-Company, he raised an industrial dispute before the Labour Court by filing application No. 421 of 2001 under Section 31(3) read with Sections 61 and 62 of the Madhya Pradesh Industrial Relations Act, 1960 (for short “the M.P.I.R. Act”), questioning the correctness of the order of dismissal dated 30.7.2001, passed by the Disciplinary Authority of the appellant-Company from his services and prayed to set aside the same and reinstate him in the service to the said post with all the consequential benefits including back wages.

4. The Labour Court, on the basis of the rival legal and factual contentions urged on behalf of the parties, framed the following issues for its determination:-

i) Whether the domestic enquiry conducted against the applicant is illegal, malafide and liable to be quashed?

ii)Whether the applicant is the guilty of misconduct as described in the charge-sheet? iii) Whether the applicant is unemployed after termination of service?

iv)Relief and costs.

5. The enquiry report was produced before the Labour Court by the appellant-Company and was considered by it and answered the preliminary issue No. 1, regarding the validity of the domestic enquiry in the affirmative in favour of the appellant-Company.

6. The Labour Court, after adverting to the rel