JUDGMENT :

BECHU KURIAN THOMAS, J.

1. The question that arises for resolution is whether the Authority under the Minimum Wages Act, 1948 can entertain a complaint filed by the Inspector under section 20(2) of the Act, alleging non-payment of minimum wages by an employer.

2. When the Inspectors appointed under the Minimum Wages Act, 1948 (for short ‘the Act’) filed applications alleging that the writ petitioners in these writ petitions who are the employers, refused to pay the minimum wages to its respective employees, the employers claimed that there is no jurisdiction for the Authority under the Act to determine such a question. W.P. (C) No. 10835 of 2021 is treated as the leading case and the facts of the said case alone are narrated in this judgment.

3. Petitioner is running a textile business, having several showrooms all over the State. The Assistant Labour Officer, who is the Inspector appointed under section 19 of the Act, conducted an inspection on the establishment of the petitioner on 20.12.2019 and alleged that wages paid by the petitioner to 31 employees were less than the minimum wages fixed for the period, June 2018 to November 2018. The Inspector filed an application bef