SOUMITRA PAL, J.

(1.) The instant appeal arises out of a judgment and order dated 27th March. 2002 passed by a learned singe Judge in W. P. No. 948 of 2000 affirming the award dated 20th December, 1999 passed by the Central Government Industrial Tribunal at Calcutta in Tribunal Reference Case No. 14/1991.

(2.) The facts as stared by the appellant are that we respondent No.3 Chhabi Ghosh ("respondent" for short) was iratially appointed and thereafter, confirmed as a clerical .staff on 26th July, 1969 by the then Mercantile Bank Ltd. now known as the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation. Pursuant to an agreement dated 16th June, 1978 entered into by Mercantile Bank Ltd. and the said respondent, the said respondent was promoted as Staff Officer, Grade-I (Junior). The two grades of staff officers that is Grade-I (Junior) and Grade-II (Senior) were merged with effect from 1st of July, 1984, thereby bestowing the powers and duties exercised by Grade II staff officers on Grade-I staff officers also. The said respondent was in the grade of 1 300-7 725 (basic) and was drawing at the rate of Rs.3419/- per month as basic salary besides other allowances. It has been stated that from 1st November, 1977 to 30th November, 1984 the said respondent principally and substantially discharged duties and functions which were supervisory cum administrative cum managerial in nature and had head clerks, special assistants, head cashier, clerks/typists, clerk cum cashier, accounting machine operators, peons, daftaries, cash peons, sweepers under his control The respondent was vested with the power and authority to sign on behall of the bank to regularize and check transactions and to channelise fundamental transaction postings, to approve the daily cash balance reconciled by the employees subordir ate to him, had the power to authenticate savings account customer ledger cards, the authority of approving the customer account opening, to look after the current account customei ledger cards, the authority to authenticate/approve the vouchers prepared by the clerks to approve the postings in various suspense account signing and approving inward and outward remittances of local and foreign currencies, was empowered to sign demand drafts. He was authorised to sign the vouchers pertaining to bank pay order, had the powei to sign foreign inward remittance certificate, authority to sign various schedules for collection of bills, to look after and sign ledger sheet, central registrars had the authority to sign vouchers instructing another bank to debit mi account, to sign schedules to various banks for collection of bill proceeds, to sign schedules for collection of foreign bills drawn on branches of foreign banks, to sign various customer account debit vouchers, to debit customer account and realize commission charges for the services rendered to customer, to sign outward bills for collection voucher, authority to approve sundry remittances, covered in Indian rupee vouchers made for the preparation of demand drafts on the branches of the State Bank of India authority to authenticate drawing payable account vouchers and to sign note purchase account voucher authorizing purchase of foreign crorency note to supervise the Central customer ledger cards and stocks, had thr custody and control of accounting machine keys, account opening forms to authorize various vouchers prepared by the clerical staff by initiading and validating and/or passing entries made by the clerical staff, to cancel and rectify errors committed by the clerical staff in any document and. register, had the authority to direct the staff working under him and to supervise the job assigned to them. in case of emergency to take delivery of duplicate keys of a sub branch of the bank from the main office safe custody and was the custodian of strong room keys for vaults which revealed that the said respondent had the administrative cum supervisory cum managerial power.

(3.) It had been