- (1.) THE petitioners herein seek the issue of a writ of certiorari from this Court to quash the order of the first respondent herein dated 18th July, 1983, so far as the petitioners are concerned.
(2.) THE petitioners who are 12 in number challenge the validity of the said impugned order in the following circumstances : The petitioners are the confirmed employees of the Simpson and Group Companies Employees Co-operative Society Ltd. The said Society is a Cooperative Society formed with the declared object of encouraging thrift and self-help and co-operation among members and of promoting social, intellectual, normal and physical welfare of the members. When it started functioning in December, 1951, its operation was confined to the City of Madras and it was called "employees Co-operative Credit Society. " Subsequently, in or about 1960 the area of operation was extended to all places where the Simpson and Group companies are working. Thus the society extended its operation to those areas in which the Simpson Group of companies are established. Though originally the Society was started as a credit society, the activities of the same were enlarged to be a multi-purpose one. The executive management of the affairs of the Society vested in the Board of Directors and they appointed the members of the establishment, and laid down the conditions of service of the employees. Under the bylaws of the Society certain books of account have to be maintained giving full details regarding the expenditure of the Society. The bylaws provided for the employees giving sufficient security for performance of their duties. The petitioners were appointed having regard to the exigencies of business at various branches. However since the branches were not maintaining proper accounts and they were indulging in various types of transactions in the name of consumer promotion efforts, there was lot of confusion in the working of the Society's branches. It was found that credit facilities are given to non-members and also other institution which are not permitted under the by-laws. As a result of the credit having been extended to non-members who could not be identified the Society incurred losses. The petitioners who had exercised uncontrolled arbitrary power in making such transactions and also in making purchases beyond their financial capabilities, were asked to explain which they could not satisfactorily do. In the meanwhile the audit reports for the year 197778 to 1980-81 pointed out the irregularities committed by the employees like the petitioners. In those circumstances the Board of Management of the Society having no other alternative decided on 29th November, 1981, to close down the branches. Later, the Board also by a resolution decided to recover the value to the stock deficit from the staff of the various branches on the principle of collective responsibility. Subsequently certain private books of account were seized from some of the employees which revealed that the employees were using private bill books instead of using official bill books of the society. The General Body on 22nd May, 1983 decided to take steps to collect the value of the stock deficits from the employees who were responsible for such deficits. In view of the said resolution some of the employees of the branches retired voluntarily as proposed by the General Body. The voluntary retirement scheme stipulated by the General Body required the employees to pay the value of the stock deficit to the extent of their liability and authorised the disbursing authorities to debit the same from and out of the retirement benefits payable to the employee concerned. The employees thought it honorable to amicably settle the dispute which in fact is of a serious magnitude and which would otherwise involve them in criminal prosecutions for various offences including fraud, forgery, misappropriation, criminal breach of trust, falsification of accounts etc. It is in those circumstances the employees tendered their letters offering to retire under the voluntary retirement scheme to the fourth respondent, to forward the same to the third respondent Society. However, having regard to the fact that the accounts of the various branches have to be looked into for the purpose of recovery of the amounts from the non-members and also ascertain the exact liability of each of the members of the staff in the various branches, at the request of the fourth respondent union, by an agreement dated 21st October, 1982 that 15 of the employees may be retained as fresh employees till 31st December, 1982 to help the Society to arrive at the actual deficit due by the employees, 15 employees were retained. However, finding that the 15 employees who had been retained in terms of the agreement, dated 21st October, 1982 did not complete the work, their services were directed to be terminated with immediate effect after giving due notice to them failing which surcharge proceedings will be initiated against the Board of Management for the loss sustained by the society for retaining the employees beyond 31st December, 1982. It is that order which is challenged by the 12 employees in this writ petition who are petitioners herein.
(3.) ACCORDING to the petitioners the impugned order has been passed in collusion between the Co-operative Department and the Board of Management of the Society and that the first respondent herein had no jurisdiction to pass the impugned order calling upon the management of the Society to terminate the services of the employees.;