JUDGMENT :

Mishra, J.—The employer, the State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur, represented by the Managing Director, has preferred this appeal against the judgment in a writ petition under Art. 226 of the Constitution of India in which a mandamus has been issued commanding the appellant and other respondents in the writ petition to forbear from agreeing and/or approving and/or ratifying the refund of the sum of Rs. 50,46,116.27/- from the 'State Bank of Bikaner and Jaipur Employees' Provident Fund Account' to the second respondent in the writ petition, i.e., the appellant.

2. Facts shortly stated are :-

The first petitioner in the writ petition/first respondent in this appeal, is an association of the employees of the second respondent/appellant and the second petitioner is the President. The second respondent/appellant is a body corporate constituted u/s 3 and 4 of the State Bank of India (Subsidiary Banks) Act 38 of 1959, for short the 'Act'. The second respondent/appellant employed about 6,000 employees in its various branches all over India which were about 385 in number, as on December 31, 1975. Section 51 of the Act empowered the second respondent/appellant to establish and maintain,