SHIVAJI UNIVERSITY Vs. VASANT BAPUSAHEB MAGDUM

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE present petition is filed by the Shivaji University, Kolhapur through its Vice Chancellor and the Registrar to impugn the judgment and order of the Second Joint Civil Judge (SD) Kolhapur passed on 19-8-1991 in Regular Civil Suit No. 1165 of 1990 filed by the present respondent No. 1.

(2.) IN the suit respondent No. 1 (original plaintiff) had sought declaration that the promotion orders dated 20-3-1989 and 20-10-1990 of the defendant Nos. 3 and 4 to 16 were illegal bad in law and void ab initio and that the defendant Nos. 4 to 16 be precluded from accepting those promotions given by the aforesaid promotion orders and further the defendant Nos. 1 and 2 i. e. the present petitioners be restrained from implementing the aforesaid promotion orders. A further direction was sought against the petitioners that they should prepare seniority list as per the Standard Code applicable to Shivaji University and to give promotions as per the seniority list.

(3.) THE petitioners and the other defendants before the Court had filed their written statement to contest the suit. It was submitted that the suit was misconceived, baseless, untenable and that the Civil Court had no jurisdiction to try and entertain the said suit. It was further submitted that Shivaji University was an industry within the meaning of section 2 (j) of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, and therefore, the allegations made against the University were covered by the provisions of the Maharashtra Recognition of Trade Unions and Prevention of Unfair Labour Practices Act, 1971. According to the petitioners the jurisdiction of the Civil Court was ousted under section 60 of the M. R. T. U. and P. U. L. P. Act, and therefore, the Civil Court could not take cognisance of the grievance made by the respondent No. 1 (original plaintiff ).