Item No.15
THE HON'BLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE HIMA KOHLI
AND
THE HON'BLE SRI JUSTICE B. VIJAYSEN REDDY
WRIT APPEAL No.167 of 2019
JUDGMENT: (Per the Hon'ble the Chief Justice Hima Kohli)
1. The appellant/management is aggrieved by the order dated
26.11.2018 passed by the learned Single Judge upholding the award
dated 10.09.2003 passed by the Labour Court in I.D.No.89 of 2002.
2. Mr. A. K. Jayaprakash Rao, learned counsel for the
appellant/management submits that while passing the impugned order
and upholding the award, the learned Single Judge has erroneously
overlooked the fact that after filing a petition under Section 2-A(2) of
the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 before the Labour Court,
challenging the termination order passed by the
appellant/management, the respondent No.2/employee had stopped
appearing in the said proceedings to the point that she did not even file her affidavit by way of evidence. In support of the said submission, learned counsel for the appellant/management draws the attention of this court to the first page of the award impugned in the writ proceedings wherein, it has been recorded as follows:-
"After filing the petition, the petitioner did not show interest after giving considerable time to the petitioner, as she was not attending and her counsel was also not attending, it was decided W.A.No.167 of 2019 Page 1 of 3 to dispose the matter from the available material and on the evidence of the respondent."
The impugned award has also recorded in para VI that though number of adjournments were given, there was no representation on behalf of the respondent No.2 and nor did she file her affidavit in support of her claim. Learned counsel for the appellant/management states that this itself was sufficient ground to set aside the impugned award.
3. At this stage, keeping in mind the long drawn litigation between the parties that had commenced over two decades ago and is still lingering, we have enquired from learned counsel for the parties if they are willing to arrive at a negotiated settlement on the appellant paying a lumpsum amount to the respondent No.2.
4. Learned counsel for the respondent No.2/employee and learned counsel for the appellant/management have exchanged some figures and finally it has been agreed that if the appellant/management pays a lumpsum amount of Rs.2,00,000/- (Rupees two lakhs only) to the respondent No.2/employee, she will not claim reinstatement or 50% of the backwages in terms of the award. It is agreed that the appellant/management shall deposit the said amount directly into the bank account of the respondent No.2/employee through RTGS. The details of her bank account shall be furnished by learned counsel for the respondent No.2/employee to learned counsel for the appellant/management within two days.
W.A.No.167 of 2019 Page 2 of 3
5. Both the parties shall file their affidavits in support of the aforesaid terms and conditions of settlement within one week from today while exchanging copies with each other. The agreed amount shall be deposited by the appellant/management into the bank account of the respondent No.2/employee within two weeks from the date a copy of the affidavit filed by the respondent No.2/employee is served on the appellant/management.
6. The present appeal is disposed of in terms of the aforesaid settlement, along with the pending applications, if any. Only in the event of non-compliance, can either party approach the court for appropriate orders.
______________________________ HIMA KOHLI, CJ ______________________________ B. VIJAYSEN REDDY, J 04.06.2021 JSU/PLN W.A.No.167 of 2019 Page 3 of 3