Siddhartha Varma, J. - (1.) This writ petition has been filed against the award dated 4.10.2019. When the services of respondent no.3-Jagdish Singh were terminated on 17.5.2005, then an industrial dispute was raised and the appropriate State Government, on 31.12.2005, made the following Reference :
(2.) The petitioner at the stage of conciliation filed detailed objections on 12.7.2005 stating that the respondent no.3 was not a workman and, therefore, the Reference, as was made, itself was not maintainable. Against the Reference dated 31.12.2005, the petitioner filed a writ petition being Writ Petition No.17456 of 2006. The writ petition was entertained and an interim order was also passed by which the Reference order dated 31.12.2005 was stayed and on 1.12.2011 this Court allowed the writ petition. The operative portion of the order dated 1.12.2011 was as follows:- "The writ petition accordingly succeeds and is allowed. The impugned order of reference dated 31.12.2005 passed by Deputy Labour Commissioner, Saharanpur is hereby quashed. The matter is remitted back to the Deputy Labour Commissioner, Saharanpur-respondent no.2 with a direction him to pass a fresh order in the matter in accordance with law and in the light of the observations made hereinabove within a period of one month from the date of production of certified copy of this order before him."
(3.) The judgment and order dated 1.12.2011 was challenged by means of a Special Appeal being Special Appeal No.66 of 2012 wherein on 16.1.2012 it was decided by a Division Bench of this Court that the matter might not go back to the Deputy Labour Commissioner as per the High Court's order dated 1.12.2011 but the Labour Court itself could, before deciding the matter on merits, decide the question as to whether the appellant was a workman. The order passed in the Special Appeal is being reproduced here as under :- "The order of the single Judge is set aside. The parties may appear before the Labour Court on 12.3.2012 and thereafter the Labour Court may decide the case. It is made clear that the Labour Court, before deciding the case on merit, will decide the question whether the appellant is workman or not. Needless to say that the Labour Court may decide the case expeditiously.";