MUNICIPAL CORPORATION Vs. R.C.BAANIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Writ Petition No. 401 of 2001 has been filed by the Municipal Corporation for the City of Kalyan and Dombivli and Writ Petition No. 1042 of 2002 has been filed by the concerned employee. Both these writ petitions impugned the order of the Industrial Court dated 31st July, 2000.

(2.) Mr. Rao, the learned Counsel appearing for the Corporation submits that the Industrial Court has wrongly hold that the Corporation had committed an unfair labour practice under sections 9 and 10 of Schedule IV of the MRTU PULP Act. He submits that after formation of the Corporation of Ambemath, the Kalyan Municipal Corporation is not liable to pay any wages to the workman. According to the learned Advocate, in any event, the services of the workman have been transferred to Ambernath after the amalgamation of 1983. In such circumstances, he submits that the Industrial Court ought not to have fastened the liability of paying the wages on the Corporation and ought not to have declared that the Corporation has committed unfair labour practice. He placed reliance on the judgment of the Division Bench of this Court in the case of The Administrator/Commissioner, Municipal Corporation for the City of Kalyan and Dombivli v. Shri Amarsingh Babu Gaud and Ors. (Writ Petition No. 7798 Of 2004).

(3.) Mr. D'Silva, the learned Counsel appearing for the workman submits that the workman has not challenged the transfer order. However, he has challenged the imposition of penalty of stoppage of three increments. According to him, such a penalty ought not to have been imposed by Kalyan Municipal Corporation, if it is the claim of the Corporation that he was no longer their employee, but the employee of Ambemath Municipal Corporation. According to the learned Advocate, when the workman was appointed in 1978, the Corporation was not associated with any other council. It was thereafter, in 1983 by Maharashtra Government Notification, certain other corporations were amalgamated in Kalyan Municipal Corporation. He was an employee of Kalyan Municipal Corporation. Therefore, the Corporation had issued charge-sheet to him and had held an enquiry. However, since the Corporation had been split into various smaller corporations in 1992 during the pendency of the enquiry, it was necessary that the enquiry should have been dropped by the Kalyan Municipal Corporation. However, saving chosen to proceed with the same, it obviously means that the Kalyan Municipal Corporation has accepted the workman as its. employee. The learned Advocate submits that imposition of stoppage of three increments is too harsh a punishment for the workman.