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2006 Supreme(Guj) 600

Gujarat High Court
Judgename :H.K.Rathod
LUBI ELECTRICALS LTD. - Appellant
Versus
A.T.PAINTER - Respondent
Special Civil Application 150 Of 2006
Decided On : 09/19/2006

Advocates Appeared: K.M.PATEL, L.B.DABHI, MUKUL SINHA, SUNIT SHAH, T.R.MISHRA

Headnote:

Civil Procedure Code – Special Civil Application No. 150 of 2006, 151 of 2006 and 152 of 2006, petitioners namely Submersible Pump Ltd. And AP Motors have challenged the judgment given by the Officer appointed under the Minimum Wages Act and Judge, Labour Court No. 14 in Minimum Wages Application No. 51/98, 52/98 and 53 of 1998 which were filed by the applicant Government Labour Officer under Section 20 (3) of the Minimum Wages Act, 1948. Under the impugned judgment, the labour court and the authority under the Minimum Wages Act, 1948 has partly allowed said applications and directed the establishment to pay minimum wages prescribed under the Minimum Wages Act to all workmen working in the establishment within thirty days from the date of receipt of copy of said order –Held, Only wrong decisions may not be a ground for the exercise of jurisdiction under this Article unless the wrong is referable to grave dereliction of duty and flagrant abuse of power by the subordinate courts and tribunals resulting in grave injustice to any party. 1954 SCR 565 this Court held that power of superintendence conferred by Article 227 is to be exercised more sparingly and only in appropriate cases in order to keep the subordinate Courts within the bounds of their authority and not for correcting mere errors position of law was reiterated in Bose v. of Hills Division 1958 SCR 1240. Court held that the High Court could not, in the guise of exercising its jurisdiction under Article 227 convert itself into a Court of appeal when the Legislature has not conferred a right of appeal. After referring to the judgment of Lord Denning in R v. Compensation Appeal Tribunal, Shaw 1952 (1) All ER 122, 128 this Court in held: SCC p. 460. It is true that in exercise of jurisdiction under Article 227 of the Constitution the High Court could go into the question of facts or look into the evidence if justice so requires it, if there is any misdirection in law or a view of fact taken in the teeth of preponderance of evidence. But the High Court should decline to exercise its jurisdiction under Articles 226 and 227 of the Constitution to look into the fact in the absence of clear and cut down reasons where the question depends upon the appreciation of evidence – Petitions and required to be dismissed.

H. K. RATHOD, J.

( 1 ) HEARD learned Advocate Mr. K. M. Patel for petitioners, Mr. Sunit Shah, learned Govt. Pleader for the State Authority. Learned Advocates Mr. Mukul Sinha as well as Mr. T. R. Mishra for respective Union.

( 2 ) BY filing Special Civil Application No. 150 of 2006, 151 of 2006 and 152 of 2006, petitioners namely Lubi Electricals Ltd. , Ahmedabad, Lubi Submersible Pump Ltd. And AP Motors (Hereinafter referred to as Sthe Management for short) have challenged the judgment given by the Officer appointed under the Minimum Wages Act and Judge, Labour Court No. 14 Ahmedabad dated 19. 12. 2005 in Minimum Wages Application No. 51/98, 52/98 and 53 of 1998 which were filed by the applicant Government Labour Officer under Section 20 (3) of the Minimum Wages Act, 1948. Under the impugned judgment, the labour court and the authority under the Minimum Wages Act, 1948 has partly allowed said applications and directed the establishment to pay minimum wages prescribed under the Minimum Wages Act to all workmen working in the establishment within thirty days from the date of receipt of copy of said order.

( 3 ) AS per the case of the petitioners in these petitions, the wages and other conditions of service of employees working in the factory of the petitioner are governed by negotiated settlement arrived at from time to time. According to the petitioner, apart from wages and allowances, there is a scheme for payment of production linked incentive wages which is under a settlement with the Ahmedabad General Mazdoor Union which represents majority of the workmen employed by petitioner. According to petitioner, in January, 1998, Gujarat Mazdoor Sabha entered the scene and with a view to getting membership of the workers employed by the petitioner indulged in unfair labour practice of instigating the workmen to resort to mass indiscipline, go slow,intimidation, etc. Therefore, various notices were displayed by petitioner bringing to the notice of the workmen that such mass scale indiscipline is not in the interest of the workers and the Company. On account of go slow in January, 1998 and two to three months thereafter, some of the workers could not earn production linked incentive wages. Mazdoor Sabha made complaint to the Government Labour Officer that the wages paid to the workers are less than minimum wages. According to the petitioner, pursuant to the said complaint made by the Gujarat Mazdoor Sabha, the Government Labour Officer visited factory of the petitioner and he was explained the scheme of payment of wages by the petitioner but he has not examined the incentive register and according to the petitioner, on the basis of the truncated and lopsided inspection, he filed Minimum Wages Application No. 51 of 1998 before the Labour Court acting as Authority under the Minimum Wages Act. According to the petitioner, Mazdoor Sabha on the other hand, filed Special Civil Application No. 7814 of 1998 before this Court alleging that the petitioner is not paying minimum wages and prayed for consequential directions. Said petition came to be dismissed by this Court by order dated 5. 2. 1999 on the ground of availability of alternative remedy which was challenged by the Gujarat Mazdor Sabha by filing LPA No. 256 of 1999 which too came to be dismissed by the Division Bench of this Court by judgment and order dated 27. 7. 2005 with a direction that the Minimum Wages Application filed under the Act be decided and disposed of within three months. Thereafter, according to the petitioner, in proceedings pending before the authority, one application was filed by Shri Dayaram Nathuram and others at Exh. 73 for being impleaded as party to the proceedings before the authority which was dismissed by the authority and against such dismissal of that application, Special Civil Application No. 20983 of 2005 was filed wherein this Court granted permission to those workmen to file their written arguments before the authority. Thereafter, the authority by







































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