- (1.) The present writ petition has been filed for quashing the recovery proceedings dated 26.6.2005 (Annexure 14 to the writ petition). Further issue a writ in the nature of mandamus directing the respondents not to demand and recover the amount from the petitioner. Further a relief was sought for quashing the order dated 2.6.2005 relating to the petitioner (Annexure 2 to the supplementary affidavit).
(2.) The facts arising out of the present writ petition are that the petitioner is a unit of National Textile Corporation, U.P. (hereinafter referred to as NTC) which is a Government of India undertaking, owned and managed by the Ministry of Textiles and through National Textiles Corporation Ltd., New Delhi. The Bijli Cotton Mill being spinning unit exclusively manufacturing cotton yarn. However, due to beyond its control the production activities of the petitioner's mill have come to grinding halt from 1992. For the purposes of the fact as stated in the writ petition are that the Act No. 57 of Sick Textile Undertaking Nationalisation Act 1974 a number of textile mills through out the country were taken over as nationalised and the Ministry of Textiles revived the old sick mills throughout the country'. Similarly 11 mills in U.P. were acquired and were also taken over and were being managed by NTC. U.P. Ltd. including the petitioner's mills which became sick and the manufacturing activities of the mills came to halt with effect from 1992. the petitioner Bijli cotton Mill was engaging approximately 1000 work force. In the year 1993, the management of national Textile Corporation, New Delhi, referred the matter for employees towards rehabilitation of the sick mill to BIFR under "The Sick Industrial Companies (Special Provision) Act 1986 by way of Reference No. 504 of 1993." After a long exercise and hearing the representatives of workers, Trade unions, Government and other Corporations and financial institutions, the BIFR vide notification dated 5.2.2000 sanctioned a rehabilitation scheme for all the sick mills.
(3.) Out of 11 Textile Mills situated in State of U.P., out of 9 could not be rehabilitated or revived, as they were not economically viable. Only two NTC Mills known as Swadeshi Cotton Mill, Naini and Swadeshi Cotton Mill Maunath could be revived, Accordingly, the NTC took follow up steps for closure of a mill in accordance with Section 25O of the Industrial Disputes Act with effect from 31.3.2004 and also floated a liberal VRS to give an opportunity to its employees and almost 100% employees of these nine mills accepted the VRS and voluntarily left the job. In such a situation, the relationship of master and servant automatically came to an end after the closure. After the closure, plant, machinery, building of nine mills which were unviable were sold and out of the finance earned from the same, strictly in accordance with the rehabilitation package, the two mills situate in Naini and Maunath are being revived after being complete modernization.;