C V RAMAN STATE BANK STAFF UNION MADRAS CIRCLE A MANICKAVASAGAM SYNDICATE BANK SYNDICATE BANK BANK OF INDIA Vs. MANAGEMENT OF BANK OF INDIA:STATE BANK OF INDIA:STATE BANK OF INDIA:P 0 LABOUR COURT GUNTUR:LABOUR COURT GUNTUR:P A STALIN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) These appeals raise an identical question and are as such being decided by a common judgment. Before coming to the question involved in these appeals it would be necessary to give in brief the facts of each of these cases to indicate the circumstances in which the said question arises. Civil Appeals Nos. 4291-4292 of 1984 have been preferred against the judgment dated 18th April, 1984 of the Madras High Court in Writ, Appeals Nos. 561 and 562 of 1983. C. V. Raman, the appellant in these two appeals was an employee in the Bank of India which is a Nationalised. Bank. He was dismissed from service in pursuance of disciplinary action for certain charges framed against him. Aggrieved he preferred an appeal under Section 41(2) of the Tamil Nadu Shops and Establishments Act, 1947 (hereinafter referred to as the Tamil Nadu Shops Act). A preliminary objection was raised on behalf of the Bank of India to the effect that the Tamil Nadu Shops Act was not applicable to. the Bank in view of the provisions contained in Section 4(1)(c) thereof which exempted inter alia an establishment under the Central Government from the purview of that Act. The appellate authority, however, took the view that it was a case where the preliminary objection may be decided along with the appeal. The Bank of India thereupon filed two writ petitions in the High Court being Writ Petitions Nos. 2013 and 2014 of 1979. The prayer contained in Writ Petition No. 2013 of 1979 was for the issue of a writ of mandamus directing the Appellate Authority to dispose of the preliminary objection before taking up the appeal for hearing on merits. In Writ Petition No. 2014 of 1979 on the other hand a prayer was made for the issue of writ of prohibition directing the Appellate Authority not to proceed with the appeal. Both these writ petitions were allowed by a learned single Judge of the Madras High Court accepting the plea raised by the Bank of India that it was an establishment under the Central Government and consequently the provisions of the Tamil Nadu Shops Act were not applicable to it in view of the exemption contained in this behalf in Section 4(1)(c). The two writ appeals referred to above were filed by the appellant against the decision in the aforesaid writ petitions which, however, were dismissed by a Division Bench of the High Court by the judgment which is under appeal in these two civil appeals. By the same judgment a Division Bench of the High Court also dismissed Writ Petition No. 1550 of 1981. The petitioners of the said writ petition who were employees of the State Bank of India made an application under Section 51 of the Tamil Nadu Shops Act before the Commissioner of Labour with a request to hold that all the provisions of that Act would apply to them as persons employed in the State Bank of India. A preliminary objection was raised on behalf of the State Bank of India that it was an establishment under the Central Government within the meaning of Section 4(1)(c) of the Tamil Nadu Shops Act and consequently the provisions of that Act were not applicable to it. The Commissioner of Labour, however, rejected the plea of the State Bank of India and held that the provisions of the Act were applicable to it. It is this order of the Commissioner of Labour which was sought to be quashed by a writ of certiorari in writ petition No. 1550 of 1981. On the view that the State Bank of India was also an establishment under the Central Government the writ petition was allowed. Civil Appeal No. 4329 of 1984 has been preferrred against the said judgment by the State Bank's Staff Union whereas Civil Appeal No. 4735 of 1984 has been preferred by the employees concerned.

(2.) Civil Appeal No. 1120 of l976 has been preferred against the judgment of the Andhra Pradesh High Court dated 3rd February, 1976 in Writ Appeal No. 268 of 1975 upholding the order of a learned single Judge dated 14th November, 1974 in Writ Petition No. 5973 of 1973. S. Rama Moorthy who is respondent No. 3 in this appeal was an employee of the appellant, Syndicate Bank which is a Nationalised Bank. His services were terminated and an appeal was preferred by respondent No. 3 before the Labour Officer under the Andhra Pradesh Shops and Establishments Act, 1966 (hereinafter referred to as the Andhra Pradesh Shops Act). The Labour Officer allowed the said appeal which was confirmed in second appeal by the Labour Court. Aggrieved by these orders the appellant-Bank filed writ petition No. 597 of 1973 for quashing of these orders. One of the pleas raised in the writ petition by the appellant was that it being an establishment under the Central Government within the meaning of Section 64(1)(b) of the Andhra Pradesh Shops Act the provisions of that Act including the provisions of appeal were not applicable to it in view of the exemption contained in this behalf and consequently the orders passed in the appeals by the Labour Officer and the Labour Court were without jurisdiction. This plea, however, did not find favour with the learned single Judge who decided the writ petition and the writ petition was consequently dismissed. The Writ Appeal No. 268 of 1975 preferred by the appellant-Bank against that judgment was dismissed by a Division Bench of the High Court by the judgment which is the subjectmatter of this civil appeal.

(3.) Civil Appeal No. 1042 of 1979 has been preferred against the judgment of the Andhra Pradesh High Court dated 24th January, 1979 in Writ Petition' No. 86 of 1979. N. Satyanarayan Murthy who is respondent No. 3 in this appeal was an employee of the appellant-Syndicate Bank which is a Nationalised Bank and was dismissed after being found guilty of certain charges in disciplinary proceedings initiated against him. He preferred an appeal which was allowed The Bank preferred a second appeal before the Labour Court which was dismissed. Thereafter the appellant-Bank filed the aforesaid Writ Petition No. 86 of 1979 before the High Court and urged that it 'being an establishment under the Central Government within the meaning of Section 64(1)(b) of the Andhra Pradesh Shops Act the provisions of that Act were not applicable to it in view of the exemption contained in this behalf. Relying on the judgment in Writ Appeal No. 268 of 1975 which is the subject- matter of Civil Appeal No. 1120 of 1976 this writ petition was dismissed by the judgment which is under appeal in this civil appeal.