ANIRUDDHA BOSE,J. - (1.) In this proceeding, the writ petitioners challenge the validity of an order passed by the authorities constituted under the Employees' State Insurance Act, 1948 levying damages to the tune of Rs. 10,73,669/- under the provisions of Section 85B of the said Act.
(2.) This writ petition is being taken up for hearing at this stage only without calling for any affidavit on consent of the learned Advocates appearing for the parties as Mr. Bhanja Choudhury, learned Counsel for the petitioner has confined his submission on legal points only before me. From the impugned order, I find damages is sought to be levied on the ground that the employer had committed delay in paying contributions for the period between April, 2000 and March, 2001. The case of the petitioners is that their establishment had become sick industrially and an order had been issued by the Board for Industrial and Financial Reconstruction (B.I.F.R.) in the form of a guideline preventing the statutory authorities from levying damages. The said guideline was issued on 25th May, 2006 and a copy of the summary record of the proceedings before the B.I.F.R. of 25th May, 2006 have been annexed at page 29 of the writ petition.
(3.) Relying on a decision of the Supreme Court in the case of Employees' State Insurance Corporation v. H.M.T. Ltd. and Anr. reported in 2008 (1) CLR 674 , it has been argued on behalf of the petitioners that to levy damages, existence of mens rea or actus rea to contravene a statutory provision would be a necessary ingredient.;