- (1.) HEARD Mr. V.P. Singh, learned senior counsel for the petitioners. Nobody appears on behalf of the Employees State Insurance Department in spite of notice having been served upon them.
(2.) JC to GP II submits that he has nothing to say in the matter. According to learned counsel for the petitioners, Employees State Insurance Act, 1948 cannot be invoked unless the State has issued a notification in the Gazette as per Section 1(5) of the Act. Therefore any notice to answer the default during the period from 7.3.2001 to 31.7.2002 does not arise. He frankly admitted that from 1st August, 2002 they are contributing under clause (4) of Section 1. According to Sri Singh, there was no such provision applicable to the petitioners from 7.3.2001 to 31.7.2002.
(3.) PERUSED Annexure 1, the prosecution report, by which the petitioners alleged to have not complied the provisions of Section 40 of ESI Act read with Section 39 and Regulation 31 of ESI (General) Regulation, 1950.;