- (1.) HEARD Sri Shakti Swarup Nigam, counsel for the petitioner and the standing counsel.
(2.) THE petitioners are engaged in the business of printing books. Petitioner No. 1 terminated services of 82 workmen whereas petitioner No. 2 terminated services of 16 workmen allegedly after holding disciplinary proceedings for the charges levelled against them. These workmen raised an industrial dispute which was referred to Industrial tribunal 1, Allahabad for adjudication where it was registered as adjudication case No. 91/1999. Parties filed their written statements etc. and the workmen also led their evidence. Thereafter, a date was fixed for evidence by the employers.
(3.) AT that stage, the employers moved an application being Paper No. 50-A inter alia that the issues framed by the Tribunal are jurisdictional in nature and they go to the root of the matter, as such they may be decided first as preliminary issues.;