Heard the learned counsel for the parties and with their consent this writ application is being disposed of at this stage itself. The Award dated 27.06.2002 passed by the Labour Court at Dhanbad, in Reference Case No. 9 of 1996 has been challenged in this writ application by the petitioner i.e. the Management of Coal Board Employees Co-operative Credit Society Limited. The terms of reference for adjudication before the Labour Court was as under:

“Whether the termination of services of Shri Baldeo Pandey, Inspector, Dhanbad, Coal Board Employees Co-operative Credit Society Limited, Dhanbad, was proper? If not what relief he was entitled to?”

The Labour Court by the impugned Award held that the workman is entitled to honourarium and its benefits at the rates fixed by the management. The case of the petitioner in short is that the petitioner is a registered Co-operative Society under the Bihar and Orissa Co-operative Societies Act, 1935 and being a registered co-operative society the petitioner has to maintain all the records/ documents relating to employment of its employee. Managing Committee of the petitioner Society has the power under the Co-operative Societies Act and Rules to appoint, promote, transfer, punish, suspend, remove or dismiss any of its paid employee. Selection of the candidate for appointment was to be made by the Committee constituted at the District level and the State level. The District level Committee is headed by the Deputy Commissioner/ District Magistrate of the District and the State level Committee is headed by the Member Board of Revenue. The respondent no.2 i.e. the concerned workman was neither selected by the Committee nor was appointed by the Managing Committee of the petitioner. One Honorary Secretary, namely, Sri S.N. Trivedi started illegally giving some honorary work to respondent no.2 without any resolution or decision of the Managing Committee of the petitioner and he issued at his own a letter dated 3.11.1988 appointing the respondent no.2 on honorary basis as Honorary Inspector, but subsequently, the said Honorary Secretary relieved the respondent no.2 from his responsibility with effect from 5.6.1992, but on the direction of Assistant Registrar later on the respondent no.2 again resumed his honorary work and as per the direction of the Joint Registrar, North Chhotanagpur Division, Cooperative Societies, Hazaribagh. A sum of Rs. 1000/-per month as consolidated amount was being paid to the respondent no.2. However, the Assistant Registrar, Co-operative Society, Dhanbad subsequently cancelled the appointment of the respondent no.2 as it was found that he was not duly appointed by the Managing Committee of the petitioner. The Joint Registrar, North Chhotanagpur Division, Co-operative Society, Hazaaribagh, approved the order of the Assistant Registrar, Co-operative Society, Dhanbad relieving the respondent no.2 from his honorary work. The respondent no.2 raised a dispute making out a case that he was terminated from service. The said dispute was referred to the Labour Court for adjudication and the Labour Court by the impugned Award has held that the termination of service of the concerned workman was not proper and as the workman had been appointed on honorary basis, he is entitled to honorarium and its benefits at the rates fixed by the management. According to the petitioner the respondent no.2 was never on the roll of the Society, since he was appointed illegally by the Honorary Secretary and not by the Managing Committee of the petitioner and, therefore, he was relieved from his responsibility of honorary inspector, which was approved by the Assistant Registrar as well as the Joint Registrar. Since the concerned workman was not an employee of the Co-operative Society and therefore it was not a case of termination from service.

Mr. Niranjan Singh, learned counsel appearing for the petitioner submitted that under section 66B of the Bihar Co-operative Societies Act, 1935 modes and