L AND T KOMATSU LTD. (EARLIER KNOWN AS LARSEN AND TOUBRO LTD.) BANGALORE WORKS BELLARY ROAD BYATARAYANAPURA BANGALORE - 560092 REPRESENTED BY ITS ASSISTANT GENERAL MANAGER-HR AND OTHERS. ETC. ETC. Vs. ALL INDIA TRADE UNION CONGRESS KARNATAKA STA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THESE batch of appeals are preferred by the employers challenging the order passed by the learned single Judge who set aside the notification dated 1.8.2001 by which the notification issued under Section 10(1) of the Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970 (for short hereinafter referred to as 'the Act') came to be rescinded and also the declaration granted by the learned single Judge that statutory canteens employees are to be regularised by the respective managements according to the terms of his order and the other consequential reliefs which he has granted.

(2.) AS the subject matter of all these appeals and the questions raised and to be considered are one and the same, they are taken up for consideration together and disposed of by this order.

(3.) MORE than 700 factories in the State of Karnataka came under the purview and ambit of the notification and were required to abolish contract labour system in their canteens. However, some 40 managements being aggrieved by the aforesaid notification, challenged the validity of the same on a number of grounds as stated in W.P. Nos. 14083 -84/1997 and connected Writ Petitions before this Court. The learned single Judge considering the importance of the issues involved referred the Writ Petitions for consideration before the Division Bench. In the said proceedings the State Government defended the validity of the notification along with the trade unions representing the contract labour. The Division Bench of this Court after considering the rival contentions and all other aspects, dismissed the Writ Petitions by an order dated 30.3.1998. Aggrieved by the said judgment of the Division Bench, some of the employers -management preferred to file a Special Leave Petition (Civil) No. 7371 /1998 before the Supreme Court. Even before the Supreme Court the State Government stoutly defended the notification. The Hon'ble Supreme Court dismissed the Special Leave Petition by its order dated 2.2.2001. Some of the employers filed Review Petition No. 359/2001 which also came to be dismissed on 19.4.2001. Thus, the validity of the notification was upheld and It reached finality. There were no interim orders of stay of the operation of the notification either before the High Court or before the Apex Court. Therefore, the workmen had a vested right to be treated as employees of the principal employer from the date of notification.