CANE MANAGER NEW INDIA SUGAR MILLS LTD Vs. KRISHNA BALLABH JHA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) These two applications deal with a common question of law and are hence disposed of in one judgment.

(2.) The petitioner is the New India Sugar Mills. Limited, which runs a sugar factory in the district of Darbhanga. Respondent No. 1 in M. J. C. 1730 of 1964 was a worker in the said Sugar Mills having been employed as a switch board attendant. Proceedings were drawn up against him for having been found asleep while on duty at 8.30 P.M. on the 8th March 1964, and after some sort of domestic enquiry he was dismissed from service with effect from 28-3-1964. Respondent No. 1 (Krishna Ballabh Jha) in C. W. J. No. 694 of 1965 was another worker of the same Sugar Mills who was performing the duties of weighment clerk. Against him also proceedings were drawn up for gross negligence of duty and dishonesty and after some sort of domestic enquiry, he was dismissed from service by the order of the employer, dated 18-2-1964. The employer did not apply to the Presiding Officer, Industrial Tribunal, Dhanbad, for approval of their action in dismissing the two workmen as required by the proviso to Sub-section (2) of Section 33 of the Industrial Disputes Act (hereinafter referred to as the Act). It is, however, admitted that on the dates on which the aforesaid two workmen were dismissed, a reference under Section 10 (1) of the Act was pending before the Tribunal (Reference case 7 of 1963) where the action of the same employer in dismissing and terminating the services of two of their workmen, namely, Lal Bahadur watchman and Mohiuddin weighbridge fitter, was pending adjudication. The Tribunal gave its award in that reference on 2-11-1964.

(3.) The workmen in the present two cases filed applications under Section 33A of the Act before the said Tribunal. The petitioner employer raised a preliminary objection o the maintainability of such an application under Section 33A on the sole ground that the two workmen, namely, Krishnadeo Thakur and Krishna Ballabh Jha, "were not concerned in the previous dispute". The Tribunal decides this preliminary issue in favour of the workmen and these two applications under Articles 266 and 227 of the Constitution have been made challenging the correctness of the view taken by the learned Tribunal.