THE KERALA STATE VIDESHA MADHYA VYAVASAYA THOZHILALI UNION Vs. THE KERALA STATE BEVERAGES (M & M) CORPORATION AND ORS.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The above Writ Petitions and Original Petition were heard along with W.P. (C). No. 14724 of 2011, since the writ petitions were stated to be raising identical question, of regularisation of 'Labelling Workers' employed by the Kerala State Beverages Corporation [for brevity "the Corporation"]. The Industrial Tribunal, Kozhikode had, in I.D. No. 6 of 2005, impugned in W.P. (C). No. 14724 of 2014, directed regularisation of the 23 employees whose cause the Union espoused therein. In the present Writ Petitions and Original Petition, the award challenged is of the Industrial Tribunal, Kollam, which found the issue referred, to be against the Unions and rejected the claim of regularisation. It was held that the Unions would have to approach the appropriate Government under the Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970 [for brevity "Contract Labour Abolition Act"].

(2.) After hearing the writ petitions and going through the evidence, this Court is of the opinion that, but for the issue being regularisation, the facts and the evidence adduced differ considerably. Hence, separate judgments are delivered. The fact that the regularisation granted by the Industrial Tribunal, Kozhikode has been upheld in W.P. (C). No. 14724 of 2011, does not at all help the petitioners herein who challenge the rejection of their claim of regularisation. The nature of employment is not identical, which would be evident from the discussion herein below.

(3.) Three Unions of employees, one at Kochi and two at Thiruvananthapuram, raised a dispute under the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 [for brevity "I.D. Act"], before the State Government regarding regularisation of employees engaged in the work of labelling the bottles of the Indian Made Foreign Liquor [for brevity "IMFL"] dealt with by the Corporation as provided under the Foreign Liquor Rules. The Foreign Liquor Rules, under the Abkari Act [1 of 1077], by Rule 26 prescribes the affixture on the foreign liquor bottles, security labels containing the State Emblem and the facsimile of the signature of the Excise Commissioner. Hence, there is a statutory obligation enjoined upon the Corporation to affix such security labels on the foreign liquor bottles before sale of IMFL to ensure that no spurious liquor is sold in the market. The Corporation has a monopoly on the trade of IMFL, in the State.