SECRETARY OF STATE FOR INDIA Vs. YADAVGIR DHARAMGIR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is an appeal from a judgment of the First Class Subordinate Judge of Jalgaon awarding the plaintiff Rs. 3,915 damages for breach of contract.

(2.) The plaintiff was an employee of the Great Indian Peninsula Railway, which is a State- owned railway represented by the defendant, the Secretary of State. He was a passenger- brakesman employed at Bhusawal. It appears that in February, 1930, there was a general strike of the Railway employees which the plaintiff joined. There were negotiations between the All-India Railwaymen's Federation on behalf of the employees and the Railway Board. Certain terms of the settlement of the dispute were offered by the Member of Commerce and Industries and they were accepted by the Federation. These terms were issued in the form of a communigue by the Government of India and they were briefly embodied in a notice which was published by the Agent of the G. I. P. Railway. There is no dispute now as to the terms. They were : Strikers who present themselves (or duty on or before March 15, 1930, and who have not been discharged for reasons other than going on strike, will be reinstated in their former posts if they have not been permanently filled, or in some other suitable vacancy, if available. Strikers presenting themselves for duty on or before March 15, 1930, who cannot be taken on immediately because their posts have been permanently ruled, or because no other suitable vacancy is available, will have their names registered and will be offered employment on the G. I. P., E. I. or N. W.. Railways as posts become available. The plaintiff alleged in his plaint that this agreement was broken as he was not re- employed in accordance with the terms offered and he claimed damages on the footing that he was entitled under the rules governing railway servants to be re- employed till he reaches the age of 55, that is, for eleven more years, and to draw pay and gratuity accordingly. It is an admitted fact that the plaintiff was not re- employed. The defendant alleged in his written statement that the plaintiff had not complied with the terms of the offer made to the strikers and had not applied to be reinstated in time. That point was found in plaintiff's favour by the trial Court and is not now contested. It was also alleged in the written statement that the plaintiff had been discharged before the agreement was arrived at. But this fact has not been proved, and as I have said, the trial Court awarded the plaintiff Rs. 3,915 damages, with future interest, calculated on the amount he would have earned if he had been employed for a period of five years from February 14, 1930.

(3.) In this appeal by the Secretary of Star he learned Advocate General on behalf of the appellant has taken three points : (1) that there was no contract enforceable against the Secretary of State upon which the plaintiff could sue ; (2) that, assuming there was such a contract, the plaintiff would be entitled to no damages, because the Secretary of State could dismiss the plaintiff like any other Government servant at his pleasure without notice ; (3) that in any case the damages have been wrongly assessed.