The Board of Trustees cannot challenge Tribunal orders without specific authorization from the Central/State Government, as they lack jurisdiction.

ORDER

This Writ Petition has been filed seeking quashment of the order of the 1^st respondent made in ATA No.524(13) 2014 dated 18.11.2024.

2. When the matter is taken up for consideration today, learned counsel appearing for the 2^nd respondent brought to the notice of this Court that similar issue has been raised in W.P.No.27422 of 2015 and this Court, vide order dated 17.03.2025 had dismissed the writ petition holding that the Board of Trustees are not empowered to challenge the order of the Tribunal in the absence of specific authorisation/permission of the Central/State Government as the case may be.

3. This Court perused the order passed in W.P.No.27422 of 2015, wherein, this Court has held as under :-

“15. A harmonious and conjoint reading of Sections 19, 20 and 21 clearly reveal that while the powers are vested with the Central Government/State Government insofar as any act is concerned, however, the Central Government/ State Government, as the case may, be sub-delegate the said power upon the Board or any other authority to do certain tasks, if it thinks fit that it is for the efficient administration of the Act and that when such directions are given, the Central Board shall comply with the said direction. However, without such sub-delegation of power, the Board would not be clothed with the necessary power than the power available u/s 5-A of the Act insofar as management of the fund and maintenance of accounts are concerned.

16. Administration of the fund, which is vested in the Board is being carried on by the subordinates, viz., the Assistant Provident Fund Officer and other authorities higher up the hierarchy. However, as aforesaid, the Assistant Provident Officer or the Employees Provident Officer, as the case may be, being the original authority u/s 7-A of the Act, is a quasi-judicial authority, who adjudicates the issue with regard to payment of contribution towards the fund. The said authorities rendering quasi-judicial function, any order passed by them, which is challenged before the Tribunal, the original authority, in the absence of specific authorisation by the Central Government, is not permitted to question the same.

17. In the same stretch, a clear and unambiguous reading of Section 5-A , 19, 20 and 21 would reveal that while the duty cast upon the Board of Trustees is the maintenance of the fund and submissions of accounts to the Comptroller and Auditor General, it is only the Central Government/State Government, which is the appropriate authority to question any order that may be passed by the Assistant Provident Commissioner and the Board of Trustees, being a mere custodian and maintenance agent of the fund, is not clothed with any power to question the order passed by the Tribunal, in the absence of any specific authorisation granted to it by the Central Government. Therefore, the Board of Trustees also stand on a similar footing as the Assistant Provident Fund authority, who is the original authority u/s 7-A of the Act.

18. It is clear from Section 19 and 20 that only if direction and permission is given by the Central/State Government, do the Board of Trustees assume jurisdiction and power to question the order passed by the Tribunal and in the absence of any specific direction or permission granted by the Central Government/State Government, the Board of Trustees would also be not vested with any jurisdiction to question the order passed by the Tribunal.

19. In the present case, it is not the case of the petitioner that the Central Government/State Government, as the case may be, has given any specific authorisation/permission to the Board of Trustees, viz., the petitioner herein to question the order passed by the Tribunal. In the absence of such power being granted to the Board of Trustees, viz., the petitioner herein, the petitioner cannot subsume and assume the power of the Central Government and question the order passed by the Tribunal as the Board of Trustees have no jurisdiction to question the