Summary
The Supreme Court restored a Labour Court award reinstating a worker who had been removed on the charge that he falsely claimed to be a land-loser's son-in-law, holding that the High Court's single judge wrongly overturned the Labour Court's findings of fact on marriage without any compelling reason. Back wages for the period after the High Court set aside the award were denied.
Issues
- Whether the appeal against the single judge's judgment should await the pending decision on whether an intra-court writ appeal lies against a single judge's judgment on a Labour Court award.
- Whether the appellant had lawfully obtained employment, under a rehabilitation scheme for families of land-losers of the Kaiga Atomic Power Project, as the land-loser's son-in-law.
- Whether the High Court in writ jurisdiction was justified in disturbing the Labour Court's factual finding that the appellant had married the land-loser's daughter.
Held
- The appeal need not await the pending case on maintainability of a writ appeal before a Division Bench, since the present appeal tests the legality of the single judge's judgment setting aside the Labour Court award, not an intra-court appeal. (¶¶ 2, 3)
- The single judge's finding that the appellant had misrepresented himself as the land-loser's son-in-law was reached without considering the divorce proceeding between the appellant and his wife, the family details recorded by the employer naming her as his wife, and the ration card showing the same. (¶¶ 10, 11, 12)
- A factual finding reached by the Labour Court after considering the evidence should not normally be disturbed by a writ court without compelling reasons; none existed here, so the award was wrongly set aside. (¶ 12)
- The appellant was entitled to relief under the Labour Court award with consequential service benefits, but no back wages for the period from the single judge's judgment (16.12.2020) until reinstatement, though that gap period counts for all other service benefits. (¶ 13)
Result
Appeals allowed; the Labour Court award dated 09.08.2012 restored; appellant to be reinstated within four weeks, with no back wages from 16.12.2020 till reinstatement but that period counted for other service benefits; parties to bear their own costs.