JUDGMENT :

SABYASACHI BHATTACHARYYA, J.

1. The present application under Article 227 of the Constitution of India has been preferred against an order dated October 20, 2005 passed by the Employees’ Provident Fund Appellate Tribunal in A.T.A No. 383(15)/2001.

2. The revisionist-petitioners had approached the Appellate Tribunal against an order, bearing Order No. 25 dated April 30, 2001 passed by the Regional Provident Fund Commissioner, West Bengal, determining the Provident Fund (PF) dues on the Government’s Dearness Allowance (DA) component for the period from August 1982 to January 1989 under Section 7-A of the Employees’ Provident Fund and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952 (for the sake of brevity “the EPF Act”). It was found by the Commissioner that Provident Fund contribution was payable on the DA by the petitioner no. 1.

3. Learned counsel for the petitioners argues that Dearness Allowance is granted by the State Government and the petitioner no. 1 has no role, as an employer, to pay such component of the PF. It is argued that, all along, the State had been disbursing such amounts in respect of the DA component of PF through its own Disbursing Officer (DO). However, all on a sud