MANAGING DIRECTOR JK HANDICRAFTS Vs. AGA SYED MUSTAFA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner has challenged award dtd. 27/6/2016 passed by respondent No.2, whereby termination of services of respondent No.1 has been quashed and the petitioner has been directed to reinstate the said respondent forthwith.

(2.) The facts emanating from the pleadings of the parties are that in the year 1982, respondent No.1 was engaged as Assistant Craftsman for a period of 18 months by the petitioner in terms of engagement order dtd. 18/10/1982. Initially respondent No.1 was posted at Aalikadal and later on he was transferred to Training Centre, Wathoora. It seems that Training Centre, Wathoora, was closed on 20/10/1983 and the staff posted in the said Centre was directed to report to the head office of the petitioner Corporation. It is claimed by the petitioner that respondent No.1 instead of reporting at the head office, abandoned his services and absconded whereas stand of respondent No.1 is that he did join the head office but was not given further posting orders whereas his other colleagues were given further posting orders. As per the case of respondent No.1, he went on making repeated requests to the authorities of the petitioner Corporation to adjust him as had been done in the case of his other colleagues who were engaged in terms of order dtd. 20/10/1983 but despite these requests, he was not adjusted. Ultimately, respondent No.1 served a legal notice dtd. 17/12/1988 upon the petitioner along with an application requesting therein that his case be considered on sympathetic basis. The petitioner is stated to have responded to the said legal notice in terms of its letter dtd. 25/5/1989.

(3.) It seems that respondent No.1 preferred an application before the Assistant Labour Commissioner, Srinagar, seeking initiation of conciliation proceedings. The Assistant Labour Commissioner (Conciliation Officer), while observing that services of respondent No.1 have been terminated without adhering to the relevant provisions contained in the Industrial Disputes Act (hereinafter referred to as 'the Act'), sent a failure report to the State Government for making reference of the dispute to the Industrial Tribunal. While sending his report, the Conciliation Officer framed the following two issues for adjudication by the Tribunal: