JUDGMENT :

(T.S. Sivagnanam, J.)

1. This intra Court appeal by the writ petitioner is directed against the order dated 8th July, 2022 passed in CAN 1 of 2022 arising out of W.P.A. No.1521 of 2022. The said application was filed by the respondent/workman under Section 17B of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 (for brevity, “the Act”) praying for a direction upon the appellant/employer to pay the last drawn wages to the workman pending disposal of the writ petition. The writ petition was filed by the appellant challenging an award passed by the learned 2nd Industrial Tribunal, Kolkata in Case No.04 of 2012 dated 29th September, 2021. By the said award, the termination of the respondent/workman vide order dated 1st November, 2011 passed by the appellant was held to be illegal and void. The workman was directed to be reinstated in service as on 29th May, 2011 with full back wages and the appellant was directed to pay the full back wages to the workman from 30th May, 2011 till his reinstatement with a compound interest of 10% per annum on the entire arrears amount of the back wages and the appellant was directed to comply with the direction within 30 days from the date of the order. Apart from that, a cost of Rs.20,000/-was also ordered to be paid.

2. The appellant/management had challenged the award by filing a writ petition before this Court, which was filed on 27th January, 2022. In terms of Section 17B of the Act, the workman would be entitled for payment of full back wages pending the said writ petition and a prayer was made before the learned writ Court by filing an application under Section 17B of the Act. The entitlement of the workman to the last drawn wages under Section 17B of the Act appears to be not in controversy but the issue, which was raised by the appellant/management before the learned Single Bench is as to from what date the workman would be entitled to the last drawn wages, i.e., from the date of the award or the date of filing the writ petition. The learned Single Bench had allowed the application and directed payment of last drawn wages under Section 17B of the Act from the date of the award. Aggrieved by the same, the appellant/management has filed the present intra-Court appeal.

3. The reasons which weighed in the mind of the learned Single Bench for granting such a relief was by referring to the decision of the Hon’ble Supreme Court in the Case of Dena Bank Vs. Kiritikumar T. Patel reported at (1999) 2 SCC 106 equivalent to 1998 LAB.I.C. 578 (SC). The learned Single Bench also referred to the decision of the Division Bench of the High Court of Delhi in Ashok Hotel Vs. Government of NCT of Delhi and Ors. reported at 2006(1) LLJ 317 Before us, Mr. Soumya Majumder, learned Advocate appearing for the appellant placed reliance on the decision of the learned Single Bench of this Court in the case of Singer India Ltd. & Ors. Vs. State of West Bengal Ors. reported at (1999) 1 LLJ 1009. In the said decision, the Court held that the last drawn wages payable under Section 17B of the Act shall be allowed to the workman after the writ petition was filed.

4. It is important to note that in Dena Bank (supra), the Hon’ble Supreme Court took note of the objects and reasons for enacting Section 17B of the Act, which reads as hereunder:-

“When Labour Courts pass award of reinstatement, these are often contested by an employer in the Supreme Court or High Courts. It was felt that the delay in the implementation of the award causes hardship to the workman concerned. It was, therefore, proposed to provide the payment of wages last drawn by the workman concerned, under certain conditions, from the date of the award till the case is finally decided in the Supreme Court or High Courts.”

5. From the above objects and reasons, it is seen that the provision proposed to provide payment of wages last drawn by the workman concerned under certain conditions, from the date of the award till the case is finally decided in Supreme Court or in