MYSORE PRESS PRIVATE LTD Vs. STATE OF MYSORE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The respondent 4, K. Puttaswami, was the sub-editor of a Kannada daily called Janavani conducted by the petitioner, Mysore Press (Private), Ltd., Basavangudi, Bangalore-4. He was removed from service on 1 July, 1957. That removal was the subject of an industrial dispute raised by the Mysore Journalists' Association. The State Government, in exercise of their power under S. 10(1)(c) of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, referred the dispute to the labour court at Bangalore. The points of dispute so referred were -

(2.) The labour court went into the matter, took evidence tendered by the parties and made an award on 19 March, 1960 which was published in the Mysore Gazette, dated 26 May, 1960. The decision or the conclusions of the Court are set out in Para. 45 of the award which reads as follows :

(3.) Apparently acting on the direction of the labour court in the said paragraph the board of directors of the petitioner-company determined that a sum of Rs. 700 would be a reasonable amount to be paid to respondent 4 on account of back-wages. Respondent 4 did not accept the figure as reasonable and approached the Commissioner of Labour in Mysore (respondent 2) with a request to take action under S. 33C(1) of the Industrial Disputes Act, to collect from the petitioner and pay him full back-wages which alone, according to the petitioner, was the reasonable thing to do in a accordance with the award of the labour court. In the first instance, the Commissioner of Labour appears to have taken the view that the labour court not having directed payment of any ascertained sum of money to respondent 4, it was not possible for him to issue a certificate to the Deputy Commissioner to recover any amount from the petitioner under S. 33C(1) of the Industrial Disputes Act. He therefore addressed a letter to the presiding officer of the Court on 31 December, 1960 to determine the amount to be paid to respondent 4 suggesting that the labour court is the one specified by a notification dated 3 May, 1960 of the State Government, - apparently for purposes of Sub-section (2) of S. 33C of the Industrial Disputes Act. It appears from a letter later addressed by respondent 2 to the petitioner on 7 April, 1961 that the said application to the labour court was withdrawn by respondent 2. In this said letter, respondent 2 stated :