- (1.) The appellants, representing the State Bank of India have challenged a decision of the A. P. High court setting aside a circular issued by the State Bank of India dated 28/1/1987 as also a circular in the same terms dated 7/3/1987, as violating Section 9-A of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 read with the Fourth Schedule. The respondents to the present appeal are the State Bank of India Staff Union, Hyderabad Circle and the second respondent who is a person aggrieved by the circulars.
(2.) The Rules of Conduct of the Award Staff of the State Bank of India which were in force at all material times, provide, inter alia, that "An employee of the Bank may not take active part in politics or in any political demonstration, nor may an employee accept office in a municipal council or other public body without the prior sanction of the bank. "in respect of officers of the appellant-Bank, prior to 28/1/1987, under the State Bank of India Supervising Staff Service Rules, an officer who wanted to contest an election to Parliament, State Assemblies, municipal councils etc. had to resign from the Bank's service before doing so. In the case of the Award Staff, however, permission to contest such an election could be considered by the General Manager on certain conditions and on the employee giving an undertaking that he was not and he would not become a member of a political party, that he was not being nominated by a political party and that he would not be required to be present in the council/body during office hours. He also would not receive any remuneration and would (3 not plead his membership of such a body as a bar to his transfer. If he violated any condition of his undertaking, it would be open to the Bank to call upon him not to continue in his office in the above-mentioned public or civic body.
(3.) According to the appellant-Bank, cases came to their notice where employees who had been elected to public/civic office had not been performing their normal day's work, causing inconvenience to the Bank and its customers. There were also some cases of employees indulging inrestrictive practices or favouring certain political parties for obtaining benefits from the appellant-Bank. The appellant-Bank, therefore, issued a circular on 28/1/1987 to the effect that the local head offices will, in future, while considering the request of an Award employee to seek election to any public/civic body, first thoroughly examine whether his contesting the election will interfere or would be likely to interfere with his duties in the Bank. The local head offices were also directed to obtain an undertaking from the employee indicating that (7 his contesting the election will not interfere with his duties in the Bank and he will not take any undue advantage of his position in the Bank and (2 in case he gets elected, he will immediately resign from the Bank's service, failing which he Will be liable to be discharged or the Bank would be free to treat his letter seeking permission as a letter of resignation from the day he is declared elected. The circular of 7/3/1987 gives a capsule of previous instructions and repeats the circular of 28/1/1987.;