JUDGMENT :

1. All these petitions have been filed by the employees working in the Central Workshop of the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation those who joined service with the Corporation after 01.01.1983. They have been or they are the employees of the Municipal Corporation.

2. Special Civil Application Nos.1629 of 2022 and Special Civil Application Nos.7769 of 2022 were argued as lead matters. The prayers in Special Civil Application Nos.1629 of 2022 read as under:

“(A) Your Lordships may kindly be pleased to issue a Writ of Mandamus and/or any other appropriate writ, order or direction to direct the respondents to grant the benefits of General Provident Fund Scheme (Old Pension Scheme) of the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation to the present petitioner, which is at Annexure-E (Colly.) to this petition.

(B) Your Lordships my kindly be pleased to direct the present respondent Corporation to complete all administrative formalities in pursuance to the judgment dated 17.10.2016 passed by this Hon'ble Court in Special Civil Application No.3711 of 2014 and other allied matters for completion of the process required as per the provisions of the EPF Act, 1952 and EPF Scheme, 1952, for exemption from applicability of the EPF Act, 1952.”

3. The prayers in Special Civil Application Nos.7769 of 2022 read as under:

“(a) Your Lordships may be pleased to issue a writ of mandamus commanding respondent no. 1 to grant the benefit of the pension scheme as framed by for the petitioners;

(b) Your Lordships may be pleased to issue a writ of mandamus commanding respondents no. 1 and 2 to comply with the directions issued by this Hon’ble Court vide CAV judgment dated 17.10.2016 passed by this Hon’ble Court in Special Civil Application No.3711/14 and cognate matters.

(c) Your Lordships may be pleased to issue a writ of mandamus commanding respondent’s no. 1 and 2 to submit an application to respondent no. 3 for seeking exemption under section 16 or 17 of Employees Provident Fund & Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952 and thereby establish a “Trust” for managing the funds of the petitioners from which pension would be paid to them;”

4. Facts in brief indicate that a central workshop of the corporation existed under the Corporation which was an independent and a distinct establishment registered under the Factories Act, 1948, dealing with activities of purchase, repairs and maintenance of vehicles of the corporation. The employees of the workshop were governed by the Employees’ Provident Fund Scheme, 1952. The rest of the employees of the corporation were governed by the Contributory Provident Fund Scheme.

4.1 On 10.06.1983, a proposal was introduced relating to the General Provident Fund Scheme with effect from 01.01.1983 indicating that those employees covered by the CPF scheme and who are in employment with the Corporation with effect from 01.01.1983 then opt for GPF scheme. A resolution was passed by the Standing Committee accepting the proposal to frame regulations and implement the GPF scheme with effect from 01.01.1983 and to give an option to either avail the CPF scheme or the GPF scheme.

4.2 On 25.10.1983 the Commissioner of the Corporation issued a circular conveying a decision that with the introduction of the GPF scheme with effect from 01.01.1983 for the employees who are covered under the CPF scheme, those employees who do not want to join the GPF scheme but continue with the CPF scheme should give an undertaking to the concerned head clerk of the department latest by 02.11.1983.

4.3 On 02.02.1984, a circular was issued providing that the GPF scheme would be compulsory for those employees who have joined the corporation on 01.01.1983 and thereafter and those who have joined before 01.01.1983 and were in service were required to give an option latest by 29.02.1984 as to which of the two schemes i.e. the CPF and the GPF scheme they would like to con