EMPIRE INDUSTRIES LTD Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellant, which is a public limited company incorporated under the Companies Act, 1956 seeks to challenge the order dated September 23, 1992 issued by the Government of Maharashtra in exercise of the powers conferred by Sub-section (3) of Section 10 of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 (for short 'the Act') prohibiting continuance of the lock-out in its factory, Garlick Engineering at Ambernath, Thane.

(2.) The appellant first challenged this order before the Bombay High Court in Writ Petition No. 6051/1995. The writ petition was dismissed by a learned single judge of the court by judgment and order dated February 9, 2001. Against the judgment of the single judge, the appellant preferred an internal court appeal (LPA No. 70 of 2001) which too was dismissed by a division bench of the court by judgment and order dated April 1, 2005. The appellant has now brought the matter in appeal before this Court.

(3.) It may be stated here that during the course of this protracted litigation the factory was closed down on April 26, 1999 and since then it remains closed. The validity of the factory's closure is not in issue. This means that the relevance of the present appeal is only for the period September 23, 1992 (the date on which the prohibition order was issued) to April 26, 1999 (when the factory was finally closed down). In case, the impugned prohibition order is held legal and valid and the appeal is dismissed the lock-out in the factory after September 26, 1992 would be illegal in terms of Section 24(O) of the Act and the appellant would be liable to face the legal consequences. If, on the other hand the appeal succeeds and the prohibition order is struck down as illegal and invalid, that would be the end of the matter.