RAKESH TIWARI, J.

1. Heard counsel for the parties.

2. This petition and the other connected petitions with it arise out of common award passed by the Labour Court, Varanasi. The questions of law and facts involved in these writ petitions are similar. Hence, they are being disposed of by this common judgment, which shall also govern the other petitions.

3. The facts of the case are that the workmen in this petition and the connected writ petitions raised an industrial dispute before the Regional Conciliation Officer, Varanasi, challenging oral termination of their services with effect from 1st December, 1981. On conciliation proceedings having failed, the matter was referred to the Labour Court, Varanasi, for adjudication :

(a) The case of the employers in Civil Miscellaneous Writ Petition No. 12123 of 1998 is that there is delay of 9 years in raising the dispute and that Respondents were never appointed by the U.P. State Electricity Board and as such there was no question of giving any salary to the workman Respondent No. 2. It is contended by the counsel for the Petitioner that there was complete ban of appointment of the employees and there was no relationship of employer