BALACHANDRAN NAIR S.S., CONTRACT TECHNICIAN III, MVITA/VSSC, RESIDING AT SOUBHAGYA, ARASUPARAMBU, NEDUMANGAD P.O, TRIVANDRUM Vs. INDIAN SPACE RESEARCH ORGANISATION, ANTARIKSH BHAVAN, NEWBEL ROAD, BANGALORE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) These writ petitions involve a question as to the scope of exercise of power by this court under Art. 226 of the Constitution of India to issue a writ of mandamus to command the principal employer not to alter the service conditions of the contract labourers (petitioners) pending adjudication of a dispute regarding regularisation before the Industrial Adjudicator.

(2.) The petitioners are the contract labourer working with different contractors engaged by the Indian Space Organisation (ISRO) and its other establishments (hereinafter referred to as principal employer') for the purpose of executing work in the units under it. The petitioners claim that they are employed in various units of the principal employer and many of them have completed more than 20 years of service. They have been engaged continuously by the contractors to execute the work on behalf of principal employer. The length of service rendered by the petitioners varies from 9 to 20 years. The petitioners also approached the Regional Labour Commissioner Central, Thiruvananthapuram raising an industrial dispute for regularisation in the service of principal employer. According to the petitioners, the contract of labour work is camouflaged to avoid the compliance of various statutory provisions to deprive monetary benefits and welfare measures to them. The petitioners claim that the establishments of principal employer are covered by the provisions of Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970 (the 'CLRA Act' for short). Therefore, it is argued by the learned counsel for the petitioners that the petitioners will have to be treated as employees of principal employer and entitled for regularisation in the service of the principal employer. The petitioners have approached this court seeking for a writ of mandamus directing the principal employer not to alter the service conditions of the petitioners directly or indirectly affecting the procedure for regularisation of their service during the pendency of adjudication before the Industrial adjudicator.

(3.) Since the common question of law involved in these writ petitions and reliefs sought for are one and the same, these writ petitions are considered together for disposal.