JUDGMENT :

Pasayat, J. - Refusal by Presiding Officer, Labour Court, Sambalpur to accept prayer of M/s Orissa Cement Limited, the petitioner there in after referred to as the 'management') to be represented by a legal practitioner in a proceeding before it, is assailed in this writ application.

2. Undisputed factual position is as follows:

Services of one Shri Baijnath Pareek (Opp. Party No. 5) there in after referred to as 'workman') were terminated, purportedly in terms of certified standing orders of the management, with effect from April 15, 1990. On a dispute being raised, the matter was conciliated by the Asst. Labour Commissioner, Rourkela and since it ended in failure, the Conciliation Officer submitted a failure report to the State Government of Orissa. On being satisfied that an industrial dispute existed between the management and the workman, State Government referred the dispute to Labour Court, Sambalpur, in exercise of power conferred under Sub-section (5) of Section 12 read with clause (d) of Sub-section (1) of Section 10 of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 (in short, the 'Act'). On receipt of the reference on September 4,1991 Labour Court fixed October 22, 1991 for f