LALITHA DEVI, R ELLAPPAN; HANDLOOM EXPORT PROMOTION COUNCIL EMPLOYEES UNION REP BY ITS PRESIDENT Vs. DEPUTY COMMISSIONER OF CONCILIATION, MANAGEMENT OF HANDLOOM EXPORT PROMOTION COUNCIL REP BY ITS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The Employees' Union and two employees of the Handloom Export Promotion Council are the appellants herein. The core dispute turns upon the construction of Rule 39 of the Handloom Export Promotion Council, which reads as follows:

(2.) The Employees' Union, which is the appellant in W.A. No. 202 of 2008, filed a writ petition for a mandamus to refer the industrial dispute relating to the age of retirement of the respondent-Council employees and to forbear the third respondent until the dispute is adjudicated from retiring its employees on their attaining 58 years without permission under Section 33(1)(a) of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947. The appellant in W.A. No. 200 of 2008, viz. Lalitha Devi, a Superintendent in the respondent-Council, prayed for a declaration to declare the aforesaid Rule 39 as illegal, arbitrary and violative of Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution. The appellant in W.A. No. 201 of 2008, viz. Ellappan, a Junior Accountant in the respondent-Council, prayed for a certiorarified mandamus to call for and quash the order passed by the Management of the respondent-Council dated 30.4.2007, by which his application for extension of service and to continue him in service was rejected. All the three writ petitions were heard together and dismissed by the learned single Judge with a direction to the Deputy Commissioner of Conciliation to send the failure report to the State Government under Section 12(4) of the I.D. Act and a further direction to refer the dispute relating to the retirement age within a time stipulated therefor.

(3.) The Service Rules of the Council have been in force from 1993 and were amended in the year 2001. On 16.8.2004, the Union resolved to place certain demands, which included raising of the age of superannuation from 58 to 60 years. The respondent-Council amended its Service Rules by deleting the provision for extension of period of service. This was in the year 2007. It is thereafter that the three writ petitions were filed.