The Central Government is the appropriate authority for adjudicating industrial disputes involving Jammu & Kashmir Bank Ltd. under the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947.

JUDGMENT

1. The respondent No. 2 had filed an application under Section 2-A (2) read with section 10 of Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 with the respondent No. 1, praying thereby that the voluntary vacation/cessation order be declared as null and void and the petitioner-Bank be directed to reinstate him in services with immediate effect with all the consequential service benefits.

2. The petitioners filed their response and raised a preliminary objection with regard to the jurisdiction of the Industrial Tribunal cum Labour Court of J&K at Srinagar on the ground that the ‘appropriate Government’ in respect of “Banking” is a Central Government in terms of Section 2(a) of the Act (supra), therefore, the Tribunal being the State Industrial Tribunal/Labour Court has no jurisdiction to try the matter. After hearing the parties, the respondent No. 1 vide its order dated 13.03.2019 rejected the preliminary objection raised by the petitioners by arriving at a conclusion that the State Government is the ‘appropriate Government’ for the bank and the Industrial Tribunal- Labour Court established by the State Government shall have the jurisdiction to adjudicate the application filed by the respondent No.2. To arrive at the above-mentioned conclusion, the respondent No. 1 placed reliance upon the judgment of the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India in case titled as “ Nashik Workers Union vs. Hindustan Aeronautics Limited ” reported in (2016) 6 SCC 224 .

3. The petitioner-bank has impugned the order dated 13.03.2019 passed by the respondent No. 1 through the medium of present petition on the ground that the reliance placed upon the judgment in case titled “ Nashik Workers Union vs. Hindustan Aeronautics Limited ” (supra) by the learned Tribunal is misplaced, as in case of ‘banks’ it is only the Industrial Tribunal, established by the Central Government, which has the jurisdiction to deal with the Industrial disputes.

4. The respondent No. 2-the applicant before the Tribunal has objected to the petition by asserting that the J&K Bank is an authority and instrumentality of the State and was created by Maharaja of Jammu & Kashmir. Further, the UT Government has a major shareholding of nearly 59.3% in the J&K Bank ltd. and thus it has both financial and administrative control over the Bank.

5. Heard learned counsel for the parties and perused the record.

6. The following issues arise for determination:

A. Whether in case of industrial dispute between Jammu & Kashmir Bank Ltd. and its workman, the Central Government or the State Government i.e. Government of UT of J&K is the ‘appropriate Government’ in terms of Section 2(a) of the Act (supra)?

B. Whether the Industrial Tribunal-Labour Court established by the State Government of J&K, now Government of UT of J&K, has the jurisdiction to adjudicate the industrial dispute between the J&K Bank Ltd. and its workman?

ISSUE A:

“Whether in case of industrial dispute between Jammu & Kashmir Bank Ltd. and its workman, the Central Government or the State Government i.e. Government of UT of J&K is the ‘appropriate Government’ in terms of Section 2(a) of the Act (supra)?”

7. Section 2(a) of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 provides that “appropriate government” means in relation to any industrial dispute concerning any industry carried on by or under the authority of the Central Government, or by a railway company or concerning any such controlled industry as may be specified in this behalf by the Central Government or in relation to an industrial dispute concerning a Dock Labour Board established under section 5A of the Dock Workers (Regulation of Employment) Act, 1948 (9 of 1948), or the Industrial Finance Corporation of India Limited formed and registered under the Companies Act, 1956 (1 of 1956), or the Employees’ State Insurance Corporation established under section 3 of the Employees’ State Insurance Act, 1948 (34 of 1948), or the Board of Trustees constituted under section 3A of the Coal Mines Provident Fund and Miscel