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IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI
Anu Malhotra, J.
Living Media India Limited - Appellant
Vs.
Deputy Labour Commissioner And Another - Respondent
Writ Petition (Civil) No. 4048 of 2016; Civil Miscellaneous Application No. 17072 of 2016
Decided On : 28-05-2019
WORKING JOURNALISTS AND OTHER NEWSPAPER EMPLOYEES (CONDITIONS OF SERVICE) AND MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS ACT, 1955 - SECTION 17(1) - ARREARS OF WAGES - CALCULATION - JURISDICTION OF AUTHORITY - DISPUTED QUESTIONS OF FACT - SECTION 17(2) - REFERENCE TO LABOUR COURT - SATISFACTION OF AUTHORITY - SECTION 2(5) - GROSS REVENUE - CLASSIFICATION OF NEWSPAPER ESTABLISHMENT - SECTION 2(D) - NEWSPAPER ESTABLISHMENT - DEFINITION - SECTION 17(1) - RECOVERY OF MONEY DUE - PROCEDURE - SECTION 17(2) - REFERENCE TO LABOUR COURT - PROCEDURE - INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES ACT, 1947 - SECTION 33C - RECOVERY OF MONEY DUE - PROCEDURE - INDUSTRIAL DISPUTES (APPELLATE TRIBUNAL) ACT, 1950 - SECTION 20(1) - RECOVERY OF MONEY DUE - PROCEDURE.
Fact of the Case:
The petitioner, a newspaper establishment, challenged the impugned order passed by the Authority under the Working Journalists and other Newspaper Employees (Conditions of Service) and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1955, directing the petitioner to make the payment of an amount of Rs.11,92,121/- towards the arrears to be paid to the respondent no. 2, a working journalist, in terms of the Majithia Wage Board recommendations for the period 11.11.2011 to 31.03.2014. The petitioner contended that the Authority had exceeded its jurisdiction by adjudicating upon the disputed questions of fact and law, and that the respondent no. 2 had voluntarily joined its sister concern, Mail Today Newspapers Pvt. Ltd., in the year 2007.
Finding of the Court:
The Court held that the Authority had not exceeded its jurisdiction and that there was no dispute in relation to the class to which the management belongs to, the class to which the working journalist belongs to, the wages of the working journalist, or the arrears due in terms of the Majithia Wage Board recommendations. The Court further held that the provisions of Section 17(1) of the Working Journalists and Other Newspaper Employees (Conditions of Service) and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1955 are virtually identical to the provisions of Section 33 C of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, and that the embargo on the Authority under Section 17(1) of the Act is in relation to the complicated question of facts that may arise inclusive in relation to the status of the working journalists, the nature of office he holds and class to which he belongs to which may be a matter of dispute between the parties and for the decision of such disputes question of fact may need thorough examination and a formal enquiry and that the legislature could not have intended that such complicated question of fact be dealt with in a summary enquiry in terms of Section 17(1) of the Act.
Issues: 1. Whether the Authority had exceeded its jurisdiction by adjudicating upon the disputed questions of fact and law? 2. Whether the respondent no. 2 had voluntarily joined its sister concern, Mail Today Newspapers Pvt. Ltd., in the year 2007?
Ratio Decidendi: 1. The Authority had not exceeded its jurisdiction and that there was no dispute in relation to the class to which the management belongs to, the class to which the working journalist belongs to, the wages of the working journalist, or the arrears due in terms of the Majithia Wage Board recommendations. 2. The respondent no. 2 had not voluntarily joined its sister concern, Mail Today Newspapers Pvt. Ltd., in the year 2007.
Final Decision: The petition was dismissed and the impugned order was upheld. The Court directed the petitioner to release the balance amount of Rs.11,67,121/- to the respondent no.2 by the Registry on production of proof of his identity.
JUDGMENT :
Anu Malhotra, J.
The petitioner 'Living Media India Limited' a newspaper establishment in terms of the Section 2(d) of the Working Journalists and other Newspapers Employees (Conditions of Service) and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1955 (hereinafter referred to the 'Act') vide this petition has assailed the impugned order in the case bearing no. WJA/02/DLC/NDD/15/167 to 168 dated 12.04.2016 of the concerned Authority under the Working Journalists and other Newspaper Employees (Conditions of Service) and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1955 whereby the petitioner herein was directed to make the payment of an amount of Rs.11,92,121/- towards the arrears to be paid to the respondent no. 2 herein in terms of the Majithia Wage Board recommendations for the period 11.11.2011 to 31.03.2014 within one month from the date of the passing of the orders failing which the recovery certificate could be issued against the management.
2. The respondent no. 2 as petitioner before the concerned Authority had filed two applications i.e. one application under Section 17(1) of the Act dated 03.08.2012 claiming that the interim relief of the 30% on the basic wages w.e.f. 08.01.2008 notified in view of the notification dated 24.08.2008 has not been paid to him along with other miscellaneous expenses. The second application under Section 17(1) of the Act was filed on 06.11.2014 after the Majithia Wage Board recommendations was upheld by the Hon'ble Supreme Court vide judgment dated 07.02.2014 and the respondent no. 2 herein had sought arrears of wages w.e.f. 11.11.2011. The first application had been filed by the respondent no. 2 before the concerned Authority in the Central District and the second application was filed in the New Delhi District and subsequently, the first application was also transferred to the New Delhi District on 07.04.2015 as the management representative i.e. the petitioner herein informed the Authority at the Central District that the management M/s. Living Media India Limited was functioning at K-9, Connaught Circus, New Delhi. Thereafter, the respondent no. 2 herein vide application dated 11.08.2015 submitted that his services had been terminated by the management w.e.f. 28.07.2015 and thus sought calculation of the arrears till 28.07.2015. The concerned Authority clubbed both the applications as the matters related to one management and one employee with the same cause of action and during the proceedings dated 20.10.2015, the respondent no. 2 herein sought liberty to withdraw the claim pertaining to fixation of his wages on account of the payment of the interim relief w.e.f. 08.01.2008 and Manisana Wages Board Award seeking liberty to institute a fresh claim with all details and calculations, if so advised in future. The claim was thus limited by the claimant i.e. the respondent no. 2 herein before the concerned Authority to the payment of arrears in terms of the Majithia Wage Board recommendations for the period from 11.11.2011 to 30.03.2014.
3. Undisputedly the arrears w.e.f. 11.11.2011 to 30.03.2014 had not been paid by the management to the respondent no. 2 herein at the time of the passing of the impugned order (in terms of the order dated 29.09.2016 in the present petition, an amount of Rs.11,92,121/- as awarded as arrears from 11.11.2011 to 30.03.2014 has been deposited in the court and vide order dated 20.01.2017, out of the said amount, a sum of Rs.25,000/- has been released to the respondent no. 2 herein towards litigation expenses).
4. The Majithia Wage Board recommendations were accepted by the Government of India on 25.10.2011 and notified vide SO no. 2532(E) dated 11.11.2011. Inter-alia, the scale of wages for employees were enhanced by variable pay, which variable pay as per Clause-9 of the Majithia Wage Board recommendations was to be the specified percentage of the basic pay drawn by an employee in
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