IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU

DATED THIS THE 22^ND DAY OF FEBRUARY, 2021

BEFORE

THE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE M. NAGAPRASANNA

WRIT PETITION No.2759/2019 (L – PG)

BETWEEN

1.

VARMA INDUSTRIAL PRIVATE LIMITED

A COMPANY INCORPORATED UNDER THE

COMPANIES ACT, 1956 HAVING ITS

REGISTERED OFFICE AT TOWER ‘B’,

9^TH FLOOR, CORPORATE BLOCK,

DIAMOND DISTRICT, OLD AIRPORT ROAD,

KODIHALLI, BENGALURU – 560 008.

REPRESENTED BY IT’S AUTHORISED

REPRESENTATIVE MR.KHALID MOHSIN.

2.

IBC KNOWLEDGE PARK PRIVATE LIMITED

A COMPANY INCORPORATED UNDER THE

COMPANIES ACT, 1956 HAVING ITS REGISTERED

OFFICE AT TOWER ‘B’, 9^TH FLOOR,

CORPORATE BLOCK, DIAMOND DISTRICT,

OLD AIRPORT ROAD, KODIHALLI,

BENGALURU – 560 008.

REPRESENTED BY AUTHORISED

REPRESENTATIVE

MR.SALIM JAHANGEER KIRMANI.

... PETITIONERS

(BY SRI ARJUN RAO, ADVOCATE (PHYSICAL HEARING))

R

2

AND

1.

MR.P.N.JANAKIRAMAN SHETTY

S/O LATE MR.P. NARAYANA SHETTY,

AGED MAJOR,

RESIDING AT NO.419, 7^TH CROSS,

DOMLUR LAYOUT,

OPPOSITE CORPORATION BANK,

BENGALURU – 560 071.

2.

ASSISTANT LABOUR COMMISSIONER

AND APPELLATE AUTHORITY

UNDER THE PAYMENT OF GRATUITY ACT,

BENGALURU DIVISION - 3, KARMIKA BHAVANA,

BANNERGHATTA ROAD,

NEAR DAIRY CIRCLE, BENGALURU - 560 029.

3.

LABOUR OFFICER AND CONTROLLING

AUTHORITY UNDER THE PAYMENT OF GRATUITY

ACT, BENGALURU SUB – DIVISION - 3,

KARMIKA BHAVANA, BANNERGHATTA ROAD,

NEAR DAIRY CIRCLE, BENGALURU - 560 029.

... RESPONDENTS

(BY SRI S.B.MUKKANNAPPA, ADVOCATE FOR R1

(PHYSICAL HEARING);

SMT.M.C.NAGASHREE, AGA FOR R2 AND R3 (PHYSICAL

HEARING))

THIS WRIT PETITION IS FILED UNDER ARTICLES 226

AND 227 OF THE CONSTITUTION OF INDIA PRAYING TO

CALL FOR THE RECORDS OF THE ASSISTANT LABOUR

COMMISSIONER AND APPELLATE AUTHORITY UNDER THE

PAYMENT OF GRATUITY ACT, BENGALURU-3, BENGALURU

IN APPEAL NO. SA.KAA.BEM-3/PGA/APPEAL/CR-78/2017;

QUASH THE ORDER DATED 31.05.2018 IN SA.KAA.BEM-

3/PGA/APPEAL/CR-78/2017 BEFORE THE ASSISTANT

LABOUR COMMISSIONER AND APPELLATE AUTHORITY

3

UNDER THE PAYMENT OF GRATUITY ACT, BENGALURU-3,

BENGALURU (ANNEXURE-A) AND ETC.,

THIS WRIT PETITION HAVING BEEN HEARD AND

RESERVED FOR ORDERS ON 16.02.2021, COMING ON

FOR PRONOUNCEMENT THIS DAY, THE COURT MADE THE

FOLLOWING :-

ORDER

The petitioners/Verma Industrial Private Limited

and IBC Knowledge Park Private Limited (hereinafter

referred to as ‘1^st Company and 2^nd Company

respectively’ for short) have called in question the order

of the Controlling Authority under the Payment Gratuity

Act, 1972 (‘the Act’ for short) directing payment of

interest against the 1^st petitioner and payment of

gratuity in respect of the 2^nd petitioner. For the sake of

convenience the petitioners will be referred to as

petitioners and the respondent as the workman in this

order.

4

2. Brief facts leading to the filing of the present

common writ petition, as borne out from the pleadings,

are as under:

The 1^st respondent/workman was an employee of

petitioners’ companies who joined the services of the 1st

petitioner on 2-08-1971 and was due to retire on

attaining the age of superannuation on 20^th October,

2002 after rendering about 31 years of service, by which

point

of

time.,

the

workman

joined

the

2^nd

petitioner/Company as a fresh candidate and worked

there up to 15-01-2015. After completion of the

aforesaid services, the petitioner gave a representation

demanding payment of gratuity amount from the hands

of the 1^st petitioner company for 31 years of service that

he had rendered. In reply the 1^st petitioner/Company

paid gratuity on 2-06-2015 sans payment of interest for

the delayed payment, after which the workman

approached the Controlling Authority under the Act

demanding interest on delayed payment of gratuity in so

5

far as it pertained to the 1^st petitioner/Company and

gratuity

in

so far

a