Arun Kumar Mitra, J. - (1.) This writ petition was moved on behalf of the Railway Contractors Labour Union (WB) (C.I.T.U), Calcutta Metro Railway (hereinafter referred to as the said Union) praying for cancellation of the impugned notices dated 5.9.2002 and 28.1.2003 being Annexures P-3 and P-4 by which the Metro Railway Authorities tried to fill up the vacancies by appointing R.P.F constables. The members of the petitioner is the Union consisting of the Railway Contractors labour working in Metro Railways. It is the claim of the petitioner that the members of the petitioner of the said Union (sic) they are working as checking assistant, Safaiwala, gangman etc. under the different contractors. The checking assistants are working as watch and ward staff and their duties are to watch the gates so that the passengers cannot enter the station without tickets or they cannot carry inflammable articles etc. The petitioner also claims that the checking assistants performed the above works whereas the R.P.F constables are there to provide over all security to the Metro Railways and the R.P.F constables are provided with fire arms while on duties when checking assistants perform their duty without any arms whatsoever.
(2.) It is stated in the writ petition that the said Union had moved a writ petition before this High Court and on the said petition Hon'ble Justice Tarun Chatterjee (as His Lordship then was) passed an order on 5.6.2000 directing inter alia the Central Labour Advisory Board, New Delhi, to make an enquiry and to submit a report before the Secretary, Ministry of Labour, New Delhi to make an enquiry and after enquiry to forward the names requiring their regularisation of services and His Lordship also directed the Secretary, Ministry of Labour, New Delhi, to consider the representation given on behalf of the said Union in this regard. His Lordship also directed that the Secretary shall direct the enquiry to be held through the Central Labour Advisory Board as to whether the regularisation of services of the members of the petitioner can be done or not. His Lordship directed the respondent authorities to complete the process by 31.12.2000. The petitioner has annexed the said order passed by the Hon'ble Justice Chatterjee as Annexure 'E' to the writ petition. According to the petitioner, the appropriate Government through a notification dated 26.2.2002 abolished the contract labour system in the post of checking system in Metro Railway and the petitioner has made this notification as Annexure P-I to the writ petition. Thereafter, the writ petitioner through their learned Advocate wrote a letter dated 9.9.2002 requesting the Railway Authority that is the respondent No. 3 herein to absorb the workers working under the Metro Railways who are also the members of the said Union.
(3.) Suddenly thereafter the petitioner came to know and could anyway procure two copies of internal Memos No. Metro/DIV/DCM/SO and CA/97-97 (OT) dated August 23, 2000 and Metro/DIV/O&M/SU staff CA/96-97 (OT) dated 8th May, 2000. According to the members of the petitioner from these two internal Memos it would be clear that the intention of the authorities was to regularise the checking assistants and with this intention,the notification dated 26.2.2002 was issued.;