- (1.) THIS appeal is directed against the judgment of the learned single judge of this Court dated 4. 9. 1989 whereby the learned single judge has maintained the award rendered by the Industrial Tribunal and Labour Court, Jodhpur dated 16. 6. 1989.
(2.) THE facts necessary to be noticed for the disposal of this special appeal briefly stated are : that the labourers of the petitioner-company went on strike on 11. 12. 1986 and with the intervention of the Labour Commissioner, Govt. of Rajasthan, Jaipur the matter was settled and the strike was called off on 22. 4. 1987. On 22. 4. 1987, all the labourers of the petitioner company along with the office bearers of the respondent Union were taken back on duty. However, on the very next day, a chargesheet was served on Shri Jabarsingh, Bhanwarsingh, Ranidansingh, Kanti Prasad, Bhoor Singh, and Markandey on 23. 4. 1987. A reply was filed by the aforesaid labourers and it was prayed that they should be allowed to be defended by the Trade Union Leaders Shri Iqbal Singh and Shri Gopikishan. This prayer was rejected by the Management of the petitioner company and, therefore, the aforesaid six labourers refused to participate in the enquiry and the enquiry proceeded ex parte. The services of these six labourers were terminated.
(3.) AN industrial dispute was raised and it was referred to the Industrial Tribunal by an order of the appropriate Govt. dated 17. 3. 1988. This industrial dispute was raised by the respondent-Union on behalf of aforesaid six labourers. Both the parties filed their claims. The termination was challenged on two grounds; firstly, that in not allowing the respondent-Union's workers to represent the cases of the aforesaid six labourers by Trade Union leaders Shri Iqbal Singh and Shri Gopikishan, who were not employees of the petitioner company, the principles of natural justice have been violated and, secondly that no interim relief was granted to the aforesaid six labourers and, therefore, their termination was wrong. So far as the question of interim relief is concerned, that ground was rejected by the Industrial Tribunal. However, it was held that refusal to grant permission to the respondent Union to represent the cases of the aforesaid six labourers by Trade Union leaders Shri Iqbalsingh and Shri Gopikishan is violative of the principles of natural justice and hence, the enquiry cannot be held to be sustainable. The Tribunal set aside the order of the domestic enquiry and directed that the petitioner-company should produce the documents and affidavits to establish the charges against the labourers before the Court. It was against this order that the petitioner company filed a writ petition before this Court and that writ petition came to be dismissed and hence this special appeal.;