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IN THE HIGH COURT FOR THE STATE OF TELANGANA AT

HYDERABAD

THE HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE E.V.VENUGOPAL

WRIT PETITION No.40396 of 2025

Date: 31.12.2025

Between:

M/s. Hartex Rubber Private Limited

..Petitioner

And

Authority under Section 7 A of EPF & MP Act, 1952

Cum-Regional P.F.Commissioner-I,

Regional Office, 12-1, 1^st Floor, Susheeram Complex,

Patancheru, Sanga Reddy District

and two others

..Respondents

ORDER

This Writ Petition is filed seeking the following relief:-

“…to issue direction or order or writ one in the nature of

Mandamus or any other appropriate writ setting aside the order

dated 11.07.2025 in EPF IA No.1 and 2 of 2025 including the

order dated 15.12.2025 in I.A.No.10 of 2025 in EPF Appeal

No.50 of 2025 on the file of the CGIT-cum-EPF Appellate

Tribunal, Hyderabad, passed by the 3^rd respondent herein, in

the interest of justice and equity and pass such other…”

2. Heard Sri V.Hari Haran, learned Senior Counsel appearing

for Sri Srikanth Hariharan, learned counsel for the petitioner and

Sri G.Venkateswarlu, learned Standing Counsel appearing for

respondent No.1 and 2. None appears for respondent No.3.

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Wp_40396_2025

3. Learned counsel for the petitioner would submit that,

aggrieved by the order, dated 07.05.2025 passed by respondent

No.1 under Section 7A of the Employees Provident Fund and

Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952 (for short “the EPF Act”), the

petitioner filed an appeal under Section 7-I of the EPF Act before

respondent No.3 vide EPF Appeal No.50 of 2025 and along with

the appeal, I.A.Nos.1 and 2 of 2025 were also filed seeking waiver

of depositing 75% of amount out of Rs.3,26,61,416/-, which was

determined by respondent No.1 vide order, dated 07.05.2025. By

an order, dated 11.07.2025, respondent No.3 admitted the appeal

subject to remittance of 30% of the determined amount.

Thereafter, the petitioner filed I.A.No.10 of 2025 to review the

order, dated 11.07.2025 by reducing the pre-deposit amount to 5%

from 30%, as directed by order, dated 11.07.2025 in I.A.Nos.1 and

2 of 2025. By an order, dated 15.12.2025, I.A.No.10 of 2025 was

dismissed. Aggrieved by the same, the present writ petition is filed.

4. Relying upon the order passed by this Court in W.P.No.4542

of 2024 and the decision of the Hon’ble Apex Court in Union of

India v. Rajat Infrastructure Private Limited and others, (2020) 3 SCC 770 Sri

G.Venkateswarlu, learned Standing Counsel appearing for

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Wp_40396_2025

respondent Nos.1 and 2 would submit that, when an appeal is

pending before the Tribunal, this Court could not entertain a writ

petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India.

5. A perusal of the material on record would show that,

aggrieved by the order passed by respondent No.1 under Section 7-

A of the EPF Act, the petitioner filed an appeal the petitioner filed

an appeal under Section 7 I of the EPF Act vide E.P.F.Appeal

No.50 of 2025 and along with the appeal, the petitioner has also

filed I.A.Nos.1 and 2 of 2025. The instant writ petition arises out

of an interim order, dated 11.07.2025 passed in I.A.Nos.1 and 2 of

2025 in EPF Appeal No.50 of 2025 and also the order, dated

15.12.2025 passed in I.A.No.10 of 2025. The facts and

circumstances of the present case and the judgments relied upon

by the learned Standing Counsel for respondent Nos.1 and 2 are

entirely different, and therefore, the said decisions are not relevant

to the present case.

6. Before proceeding further, it is relevant to refer to Section 7-

O of the EPF Act, which reads as under:-

"7-O. Deposit of amount due, on filing appeal. - No

appeal by the employer shall be entertained by a

Tribunal unless he has deposited with it seventy-five

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per cent of the amount due from him as determined by

an officer referred to in section 7A:

Provided that the Tribunal may, for reasons to be

recorded in writing, waive or reduce the amount to be

deposited under this section."

7. It is crystal clear from a bare reading of section 7-O of the

EPF Act that, whenever an order is passed und