MANGALORE GANESH BEEDI WORKS Vs. WORKMENS REP

JUDGEMENT

(1.) IN these appeals certain questions of general importance such as whether on an award of Industrial Tribunal a settlement entered into between the management and workmen under Section 18 (1) of the Industrial disputes Act, 1947 for short, 'the Act' and accepted by vast majority of workmen can be set at naught by the High Court in exercise of its extraordinary jurisdiction under Article 226 of the Constitution on the ground that all workmen are not parties to the settlement; whether an Industrial Tribunal is obliged to apply norms applicable to industrial adjudication on a wage dispute while accepting the settlement and passing an award in terms thereof arise for consideration.

(2.) THE appellants are Beedi industries and they being aggrieved by the judgment of the learned single Judge dated February 1, 1999 in w. P. Nos. 7588-7593 of 1998 have preferred these writ appeals. The first respondent in each of these appeals, namely, Mangalore Ganesh beedi Workers' and Allied Beedi Factory workers Association, for short, 'the Union' representing the workmen in the concerned industries preferred W. P. Nos. 7588-7593 of 1998 under Articles 226 and 227 of the constitution seeking quashing of the awards passed by the Industrial Tribunal, Bangalore, dated October 27, 1997 in I. D. Nos. 13-18 of 1991. Learned single Judge by his order under appeal allowed the writ petitions, quashed the impugned awards and remanded the Industrial disputes to the Industrial Tribunal for fresh disposal, The Management being aggrieved by the above order of the learned single Judge presented these appeals on May 24, 1999 and this Court on December 15, 1999 passed an interim order staying the operation of the order of the learned single Judge and that order has been in operation till now.

(3.) THE Mangalore Ganesh Beedi Works, who is the appellant in W. A No. 3689 of 1999 is a well-established and well-known Beedi manufacturing concern in the State of karnataka and it had the largest share of market in the country. Before 1972, the Mangalore ganesh Beedi Works used to engage contract labourers for the manufacture of Beedis. After 1972, 5 more companies, namely, Vatapuresh home Industries, Gurukripa Industries, Jyoti home Industries, Deepak Enterprises and south Kanara Home Industries were formed as sister concerns. In the year 1979, the respondent-Union in each of the above industries had placed a Charter of Demands which was referred to the Industrial Tribunal, bangalore under Section 10 (l) (d) of the Act and the said reference came to be numbered as i. D. Nos. 13-18 of 1991 (old I. D. Nos. 61-66 of 1986 ). Those references were pending for adjudication before the Tribunal for quite a long time.