MAHARASHTRA STATE ELECTRICITY BOARD Vs. SAKHARAM SITARAM SHINDE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS writ petition under Article 227 of the Constitution of India impugns an Award dated 29th march, 1988 made by the Labour Court Sangli, in Reference (IDA) No. 39 of 1985 under the provisions of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 (hereinafter referred to as 'the Act' ).

(2.) THE petitioner is the State Electricity Board. The respondent joined the service of the petitioner as daily rated labourer on 16th February, 1975. Prior to joining the petitioner's service the respondent was working in the Indian Army and though he claimed that he had been validly discharged from the Army, he did not produce his discharge certificate or any other document from the Army which would indicate his exact date of birth as recorded in the Army records, however, when he was recruited on 16th February, 1975 in the service of the petitioner, the respondent orally gave his date of birth as 1-4-1924. On or about 1-5-1976 the respondent produced a School Leaving Certificate dated 1st May, 1976 issued by the Head Master, Zilla parishad, Marathi Boys' Primary School, Wangi, Taluka Khanapur, District Sangli, in which the date of birth of the respondent was shown as 1-4-1924. Some time in 1984, the respondent produced a School Leaving Certificate dated 23rd September, 1980 issued by the Head Master of the Zilla Parishad, Marathi Boys' Primary School, Wangi, Taluka Khanapur, District Sangli, in which strangely his date of birth was shown as 1-5-1925. The respondent also filed affidavit dated 3-5-1984 enclosing along with it a Xerox copy of the School Leaving Certificate of his previous school. On the basis of the date of birth mentioned in the records, the respondent completed 60 years of age on 1-4-1984 and was superannuated from service with effect from 31st March, 1984. The respondent was paid all his dues including gratuity and provident fund. The respondent did not accept his superannuation from service, insisting that his date of birth was 1-5-1925 and that he was entitled to remain in service till 1-5-1985. In view of the discrepancy in the later certificates produced by the respondent, the petitioner refused to accept them as correct and declined to change its decision of superannuating the respondent from service.

(3.) THE respondent raised an industrial dispute for reinstatement in service with continuity and back-wages. The industrial dispute was referred to the Labour Court, Sangli, vide Reference (IDA) No. 39 of 1985. The Labour Court, Sangli, by the impugned Award held that the correct date of birth of the respondent was 1-5-1925 and directed payment of wages from the date of his dismissal (i. e. , 31-3-1984), with interest at the rate of 10 per cent per annum thereupon. Being aggrieved thereby, the petitioner is before this Court.