CERAMIC MALLEABLE MAZDOOR SANGH OF HIGH TESION INSULATOR FACTORY Vs. BIHAR STATE INDUTRIAL DEVELOPMENT CORPN. LTD

JUDGEMENT

(1.) It is an irony and indeed, a sad commentary on the affairs of public sector undertakings of this State that the workers of the undertakings, or for that matter their Unions, were driven to the necessity of seeking annihilation of the very institutions which were sustaining, or, are supposed to sustain them by providing livelihood. The petitioner in Company Petition No. 1 of 1995R is the Union of the workers of High Tension Insulator Factory at Namkom in the district of Ranchi, a unit of the Bihar State Industrial Development Corpn. Ltd. known as Ceramic Malleable Mazdoor Sangh of High Tension. Insulator Factory and the petitioner in Company Petition No. 2 of 1995R is the Union of the workers of another unit of the same corporation, namely, Swarnrekha Watch Factory at Namkom and is known as Swarnrekha Watch Factory Employees Union or Swarnrekha Ghari Kharkhana Shramik Sangh and they shall hereinafter be referred to as 'the petitioner-union (s)'. Both the applications purporting to be under sections 433(e), 434(a) and 439(b) of the Companies Act, 1956 ('the Act') have been presented by respective Unions of the workers of the High Tension Insulator Factory and Swarnrekha Watch Factory seeking winding up of the Bihar State Industrial Development Corpn. Ltd. and the units concerned on the ground that they have been unable to pay their rightful dues, such as, Salary, allowance and bonus, etc. Since grounds canvassed for winding up in both the cases are identical in nature, these two petitions have been heard together and are being disposed of by this common judgment.

(2.) The Bihar State Industrial Development Corpn. Ltd., a public sector undertaking of the Government of Bihar registered under the Companies Act, having its registered office at Indira Bhawan, Bailey Road, Patna, is common in both the petitions and has been described as opposite party No. 1. Its Managing Director has been described in both the petitions as opposite party No. 2. The High Tension Insulator Factory at Namkom (Ranchi) is opposite party No. 3 in Company Petition No. 1 of 1995R and its General Manager is opposite party No. 4. Malleable Cast Iron Foundry, a constituent of opposite party No. 3 is impleaded in the said petition as opposite party No. 5; whereas Bihar State Electricity Board and its Chairman have been impleaded as opposite party Nos. 6 and 7 respectively therein. In Company Petition No. 2 of 1995R, opposite party No. 3 is Swarnrekha Watch Factory and its General Manager has been arrayed as opposite party No. 4.

(3.) Ignoring all the verbose with which the two petitions are replete, the short facts of the case of the petitioner in Company Petition No. 1 of 1995R are that the High Tension Insulator Factory (opposite party No. 3) was set up the Government of Bihar some time back in technical collaboration with the Government of Chechoslovakia for manufacturing high tension insulators and the factory was acquired and taken over by the Bihar State Industrial Development Corpn. Ltd. (BSIDC) with all its assets, rights, privileges and liabilities in connection thereof. In course of conciliation proceedings between the management of opposite party No. 3 and the Union of the workers thereof, a settlement was arrived at on 6-6-1966, according to which the management agreed to implement the orders of the State Government issued from time to time in the matter of providing amenities to its employees in accordance with the recommendations of Pay Revision Committees appointed on this behalf by the Government. In others, the Management of opposite party No. 3 agreed to pay to its employees salary, allowances, and bonus etc. from time to time in terms of recommendations of the Pay Revision Committees as payable by the State Government to its employees. It appears that in course of time, the State Government appointed a Pay Revision Committee known as Fifth Pay Revision Committee and that Committee made certain recommendations respecting pay and allowances etc. of the employees of the State Government and the same were implemented by the latter. Therefore, in terms of settlement dated 6-6-1966, the employees /workers of opposite party No. 3 also became entitled to the same amenities including payment of bonus and salary, etc., as approved by the State Government for its employees in terms of the recommendation of the said Committee. As the employees and workers of opposite party No. 1 and opposite party No. 3 were not being paid their salary, etc. in terms of recommendation of the Fifth Pay Revision Committee, representations were made by the Workers' Unions and the Confederation of Unions of opposite party No. 1 to opposite party No. 2. On such representations having been made by the Workers Unions including the petitioner-Union, at a meeting of those Unions with opposite party No. 2 it was resolved that in terms of recommendations of the Fifth Pay Revision Committee, payment of bonus, etc., to the workers shall be made only on getting financial assistance from the State Government. When payment was not made to them in terms of the assurance given by opposite party No. 2, the petitioner-Union submitted a memo of representation dated 31-3-1992 to the General Manager of opposite party No. 3 demanding payment of salary of the workers for the months of Jan., 1992 and Feb., 1992 together with arrears fallen due to them in terms of the recommendations of the Fifth Pay Revision Committee. In appears that the workers of opposite party No. 3 were paid a sum of Rs. 1,000, each, by way of advance and the Management was intending to adjust the said amount of advance against their salaries for the months of Jan., Feb. and March, 1992. Therefore, the petitioner-Union had requested that since the workers were not paid their entire arrears for the year 1991-92, the amount of advance should be adjusted against the arrears, and current salaries for the months of Jan., Feb. and March, 1992 should be paid to the workers in cash.