D.N.SINHA, J. - (1.) THERE are two petitioners before me. Kesab Lal Bannerjee and Hiralal Bannerjee, Their father, Monilal Bannerjee, carried on business as a supplier of tally clerks to ships that call at the Port of Calcutta. He had been carrying on this business ever since 1918. After his death in. 1939, his business was continued by the petitioners who are two brothers under the firm name of 'M. L. Bannerjee and Sons'. As such, they have also been carrying on business as supplier of tally clerks to ships that call at the Port of Calcutta. The way that the business is carried on is that the petitioners employ a number of tally clerks, whom they supply to ships according to their requirements. In the year 1948, was enacted the 'Dock Workers (Regulation of Employment) Act, 1948' being Central Act IX of 1948. This Act was promulgated to provide for regulating the employment of dock workers. The Act contemplates the drawing up of a scheme for the registration of dock workers, with a view to ensuring greater regularity of employment and for regulating the employment of dock workers, whether registered or not, in a Port. In exercise of the powers conferred by the Act, the Central Government in or about October, 1951, framed a Scheme called the 'Calcutta Dock Workers (Regulation of Employment) Scheme 1951.' This Scheme was intended to apply to the Port of Calcutta and to classes or description of dock work and workers set out in the Schedule annexed thereto. This Scheme was subsequently replaced by another Scheme called the 'Calcutta Dock Workers (Regulation of Employment) Scheme 1956.' This is the Scheme now in operation. Before I proceed further it will be necessaryto consider some of the provisions of the Act and the two Schemes hereinbefore mentioned. Clause (b) of Section 2 of the said Act defines a 'dock worker' to be a person employed or to be employed in or in the vicinity of, any port, or work in connection with the loading, unloading, movement or storage of cargoes, or work in connection with the preparation of ships and other vessels for the receipt or discharge of cargoes or leaving port. Clause (c) defines the word 'employer' as follows : '(c) 'employer', in relation to a dock worker means a person by whom he is employed or to be employed as aforesaid;' Section 5 of the Act provides for the constitution of an Advisory Committee consisting of an equal number of members representing Government, dock workers, and the employers of dock workers. Coming now to the Scheme of 1951, we find that under Clause 4 has been established a Board tailed the 'Calcutta Dock Labour Board', which is a body responsible for the administration of the scheme. The Board was to consist of 12 members, to be appointed by the Central Government, and was to include an equal number of members representing Government, dock workers and employers of dock workers and shipping companies. Clause 3 contains certain definitions. The following definitions are important: '(f) 'dock employer' means the person by whom a dock worker is employed or is to be employed; (g) 'dock work' means operations at places or premises to which the Scheme relates, ordinarily performed by dock workers of the classes or descriptions to which the Scheme applies; (h) 'employer's register' means the register of dock employers maintained under the Scheme; (i) 'registered employer' means a dock employer whose name is for the time being entered in the employer's register;'
(2.) CLAUSE 10 speaks about the maintenance of registers. There appears to be two classes of registers, one the employers' register and the second is the workers' register. Its corresponding ckuse in the 1956 Scheme which is of great importance in this application will be dealt with under that scheme. It will thus be seen that the scheme envisages two kinds of registration. One is the registration of the employers of the dock workers and the other is the registration of the dock workers themselves. So far as the workers are concerned, Clause 11 of the said Scheme has made a classification, and one classification is under the heading 'clerks' which expression includes tally clerks. I now come to the 1956 Scheme which has replaced the earlier Scheme, In this Scheme, the definitions are virtually the same. Thus, the 'employers' register' still means the register of dock employers maintain -ed under the Scheme and a 'registered employer' means a dock employer whose name is for the time being entered in the employers' register. Under the new Scheme, the Calcutta Dock Labour Board still continues to be responsible for the administration of this Scheme. The Board must still consist of members including the employers of dock workers and shipping companies. I now come to Clause 15 which deals with the maintenance of registers, including the employers' register. The relevant part of the clause runs as follows : '15. Maintenance of Registers, etc.(1) Employers' Register (a) There shall be a register of employers. (b) In so far as the application of the Scheme to stevedore labour is concerned, every stevedore Or stevedoring firm who on the date of the enforcement of the Scheme is already registered under the Calcutta Dock Workers (Regulation of Employment)Scheme 1951 shall be deemed to have been registered under this Scheme. (c) Persons or firms other than those who are deemed to have been registered under item (b) shall not be registered as stevedores unless Board considers it expedient and necessary to do so and in no case shall a person or a firm be registered until he or it has been licensed in that behalf by the port authority. (d) A registration fee of Rs. 500/ - shall be payable to the Board by every stevedore or stevedoring firms to be registered under item (c). (e) The Board may, subject to such conditions as it may with the previous approval of the Central Government prescribe in this behalf, permit the persons registered under item (b) or (c) form one or more groups and each group so formed shall be treated as one employer only for employment of monthly workers; provided further that the Board in its discretion may, if it is satisfied that any group of employers has to comply in part or in full with the conditions prescribed for the formation of such groups revoke the permission given from such date as it may specify on this behalf and such groups shall stand dissolved from that date.'
(3.) CLAUSE 16 of the Scheme deals with the classification of workers in registers. In this Scheme, instead of the word 'clerk' we have the words 'tally clerk'.;