VADILAL INDUSTRIES PVT. LTD. Vs. DINESH ISHWARLAL THAKKER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Both these petitions arise from the common award, and therefore, are being decided by this common order. Employer Vadilal Industries Pvt. Ltd. shall be referred to as "the petitioner Company", whereas employee Dinesh Ishwarlal Thakker shall be referred to as "the respondent" hereinafter in this judgment.

(2.) Brief facts leading to both these petitions are as follows:-

(3.) The petitioner Company for the purpose of maintaining financial records and also for maintaining accounts for the sale and distribution of commodities manufactured by it, has a separate account department, which employs number of employees, who are entrusted with the tasks of maintaining Accounts of Sales/Distribution made to sale contractors and for the purpose of such other allied activities. It is the case of the petitioner that it was the duty of the respondent to intimate the management of the total amount outstanding by various sales contractors against sale of commodities so that the management can initiate action against defaulting sales contractors and can also block supply till outstanding dues or payments have been received from them. It was also necessary for respondent and others working in the Accounts Department to put to the notice of the management any irregularities to enable them to correct the same. Any delay on the part of the respondent in bringing to the notice of the management any such discrepancy, would cause huge financial loss to the petitioner Company and would, in turn, affect the overall working of the petitioner Company. He was one of the five Account Clerks, who needed to deal with the salesmen and contractors and maintain, on regular basis, their accounts and outstanding dues. Above him were the Accounts Officer, Assistant Manager and the topmost person in this department was the Finance Manager. During the course of submissions, it emerges that other four Accounts Clerks used to deal with the Distributors, Transporters, Vendors, Cash payment and the employees' payment. The petitioner Company had alleged that the respondent, on certain occasions, did deliberately maintain the outstanding payment register and did bring it to the notice of the Management, the outstanding dues and the payment to be made by sales distribution against sale of ice-cream and other commodities. It is also alleged, on preliminary verification, that it was found that he had nexus with sales defaulters of the petitioner Company and outstanding amount to certain sales contractors was purposefully brought to the notice of the management so that supply of commodities would be discontinued and the same would go unattended till the loss would reach to enormous proportion causing huge loss to the revenue of the petitioner Company.