Central Administrative Tribunal - Chandigarh
All India Association Of Central Excise ... vs Union Of India on 29 March, 2012
CENTRAL ADMINISTRATIVE TRIBUNAL
CHANDIGARH BENCH
ORIGINAL APPLICATION NO.1094 - PB of 2011
(Reserved on 23.3.2012)
Chandigarh, this the 28th day of March, 2012
CORAM:HONBLE MR. JUSTICE S.D.ANAND, MEMBER(J)
HONBLE MR.KHUSHI RAM, MEMBER(A)
1. All India Association of central Excise Gazetted Executive Officers Chandigarh Zone Chandigarh through its General Secretary Randhir Singh Mann son of Shri Bhagwan Singh, age 49 years, Superintendent, Central Excise Range, Malout District Multsar.
2. Rajesh Rai, Superintendent, aged 48 years, C.R. Building, Sector 17-C, Chandigarh.
APPLICANT
BY ADVOCATE: SHRI S.P.GARG
VERSUS
1. Union of India, through the Secretary to Government of India, Ministry of Finance, Department of Revenue, New Delhi.
2. Chief Commissioner, Central Excise & Customs (CZ), Revenue Building, Plot No.19, Sector 17-C, Chandigarh.
3. Ashok Kumar Sharma, Superintendent Customs Preventive Station Akhnoor (J & K), Returning Officer, Customs & Central Excise Gazetted Executive Officers Association Chandigarh Zone Chandigarh.
4. Shri A.K.Sharma Ex-President Customs & Central Excise Gazetted Executive Officers Association Chandigarh zone Chandigarh Room No.308 (2nd Floor), Central Excises House, Rishi Nagar, Ludhiana.
5. Buta Singh Ex-General secretary, Customs & Central Excise Gazetted Executive Officers Association Chandigarh Zone Chandigarh, Room No.308 (2nd Floor) Central Excised House, Rishi Nagar, Ludhiana.
RESPONDENTS
BY ADVOCATE: SHRI DEEPAK AGNIHOTRI- For Respondents 1 & 2
SHRI GIRISH AGNIHOTRI, Sr. Advocate with Ms. J. JEET SHEORAN, counsel for respondents 3 & 4
SHRI VIKAS SINGH- Counsel for respondent No.5
ORDER
HONBLE MR. JUSTICE S.D.ANAND, MEMBER(J):-
A learned Coordinate Bench of the Tribunal required the applicant to prove the maintainability of the O.A. by granting order dated 21.3.2012, which is extracted hereunder:-
21.3.2012 Present:Sh.K.K.Sharma, proxy counsel for the applicant.
Sh.Suresh Verma, counsel for the respondents No.1 2 Sh.Girish Agnihotri, counsel for respondents No.3 4 Sh.Vikas Singh, counsel for the respondent No.5 As a matter of indulgence and in the interest of justice, the case is adjourned to 22.03.2012 to enable the learned counsel for the applicant to assist us on the maintainability of the Original Application.
Sd/-Promilla Issar sd/-Shyama Dogra) Member(A) Member(J)
2. We have been ably assisted by the learned counsel for the parties who have also taken us through the documentation available on the file.
3. The applicants deserve to be non-suited for want of maintainability of the petition. The reasons therefor are as under.
4. Respondent No.1 herein issued Central Civil Services (Recognition of Service Associations) Rules, 1993 ( hereinafter referred to as the 1993 rules) in terms of the authorization under Article 309 of the Constitution of India. The issuance of that rule-formulation came about vide letter dated 6.11.1995. The conditions for recognition of a Service Association, inter-alia, provided that a list of members and office bearers, and up-to-date copy of rules and an audited statement of accounts of the Service Association shall be furnished to the Government annually through proper channel after the annual general meeting so as to reach the government before the Ist day of July each year. It was further provided therein that the service Association, to which recognition is accorded by the competent authority shall abide by, and comply with all the provisions of its constitution/ bye-laws and any amendment in the constitution/ bye-laws of the service Association, after its recognition under these rules, shall be made only with the prior approval of the Government.
5. The All India Association of Central Excise Gazetted Executive Officers is the Apex dispensation of the respondent department. The applicant Association is one of the federal units for the Chandigarh Zone. Its erstwhile nomenclature as Customs & Central Excise Gazetted Executive Officer Association, Chandigarh Zone has been replaced by the present nomenclature of All India Association of Central Excise Gazetted Executive Officers, Chandigarh Zone, Chandigarh.
(There is no controversy about these facts.)
6. The elections to the applicant Association came to be held from time to time in a smooth manner. It is Respondents 4 & 5 who came to be elected as President and General Secretary respectively in the course of the elections held on 12.2.2009. The averment made by the applicants is that those elections were not fair. The validity of that election was challenged by one Shri Gurmit Singh Dhillon by filing CWP No.12194 of 2009. That CWP came to be disposed of by the High Court by the grant of a direction to the Competent Authority on 12.8.2009 to decide the representation filed by the petitioner therein. The petitioner submitted a representation which was decided by the competent authority on 15.9.2009, allegedly with biased mind. The petitioner aforementioned filed another CWP No.15903 of 2009, which came to be subsequently dismissed as withdrawn.
7. The term of the office bearers elected on 12.2.2009 having been over on 11.2.2011, the office bearers were requested to announce the election programme in the month of February in a meeting held on 18.2.2011 by giving them 10 days time. Respondents 4 and 5 failed to do so and, then, as per Resolution dated 18.2.2011. Shri Rajesh Rai, Vice President, who was authorized to appoint the Returning Office, appointed Shri Rajnesh Gupta, Superintendent as the Returning Officer vide circular dated 1.3.2011 for the conduct of elections for the various posts of office bearers of the service association. Thereupon, election notice for the conduct of elections, withdrawal of nominations etc. was issued (Annexure A-2). The process of elections was held by which the named officials were unanimously elected as the President, General Secretary and Cashier respectively on 15.3.2011(Annexure A-3). In an illegal manner, Respondents 4 and 5 appointed Shri H.L.Bhardwaj, Superintend Central Excise Jalandhar as the Returning Officer for conduct of the elections who issued the election notice. The applicant herein filed a representation (Annexure A-5) clarifying the position that in fact the elections has already held on 15.3.2011 in which the office bearers have been elected and the respondent No.4 and 5 have already ceased to be the President and Secretary of the Association so no election can be conducted. On consideration of the representation, the Retu7rning Officer aforementioned withdrew the election notice vide annexure A/6. However, that did not deter Respondents 4 & 5 who this time proceeded to appoint Respondent No.3 herein as the Returning Officer who issued an election circular/ notice Annexure A-1 announcing the election programme.
8. The applicants have applied for the invalidation for the circular dated 3.10.2011 (Annexure A-1) issued by Respondent No.3 (Returning Officer) inviting nominations for various posts of the office bears of the Association. In a way malafies were attributed to Respondents 3, 4 and 5.
9. Respondents 1 and 2 filed a short reply challenging the very maintainability of the petition before the Tribunal.
10. Respondent No.5 denied the allegations of malafides and reiterated the challenge to the jurisdiction of the Tribunal to try the controversy in the O.A.
11. During the course of hearing, it was indicated on behalf of the respondents that it is not compulsive on the part of the members of the establishment to become members of the association. It was, however, averred on behalf of the applicants that about 60% members of the establishment are members of the Association. There is, thus, no controversy that the membership of the Association is not of a compulsive character.
12. In support of the averment that activities of like associations can be construed to be the service conditions of the employees and, thus, within the ambit of a service matter, the learned counsel for the applicants placed implicit reliance upon 1999(2) SLR 294, titled MANAGEMNET OF KARNATAKA STATE ROAD TRANSPORT CORPORATION VS. KSRTC STAFF & WORKERS FEDERATION & ANOTHER.
13. We have not been able to persuade ourselves to find the applicability of the judgment aforementioned to the facts of this O.A. The Corporation, in that case, had been formed under Section 3 of the Road Transport Corporation Act, 1950 for providing efficient, economical and properly co-ordinated transport services to the travelling public. The Corporation had, thereafter, framed service Regulations thereunder. The Corporation had granted recognition to the Union as the sole bargaining agent. That choice having been made, a Memorandum of Settlement under Section 18(1), read with Section 2(p) of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 came to be entered into by the Corporation as between the Corporation and the sole bargaining agent (on behalf of the Union). It was agreed thereunder that the Corporation shall deduct the subscription of the Members of the Union affiliated to the respondent Federation from their wages on obtaining individual authorizations. The settlement was agreed to be followed till the recognition accorded to the Federation lasted or until both the parties terminated the agreement by mutual consent earlier. That system carried a popular nomenclature of Pay Roll Check-off Faculty. The recognized Union submitted a charter of demands of various disputed items qua service conditions of the employees. Consequent upon the negotiations, as between the Corporation and the Union on 10.5.1995, a Memorandum of Understanding was reached which was approved initially by the Board of Directors and, thereafter, by the State Government. The latter granted the approval , vide order dated 10.9.1993. One of the conditions contained therein was that the management of the Corporation would not take up the responsibility of collecting donations or monthly subscriptions from the employees on behalf of the recognized Federation or Union of employees. It was in pursuance thereof that the Corporation issued a circular dated 21.9.1993 withdrawing the Pay Roll Check-off Facility. That order was challenged by the Corporation by filing a Writ Petition. The learned Single Judge, before whom the matter came up for a hearing, invalidated the notification dated 21.9.1993. The order came to be affirmed in appeal. The Apex Court held therein that the deduction of the subscription form the wages of the employees constituted a condition of service.
14. The facts of the present case are entirely different. In the present case, the squabble is between the different segments of the Association itself. The applicants raise a claim that the office bearers, unanimously elected on 15.3.2011, continue to hold the fort and the announcement of elections by Respondents 4 & 5 and also the appointment of Respondent No.3 for the conduct thereof, is invalid. It is an intra-Association controversy which cannot, by any stretch of imagination, be described to be a service dispute.
15. Having said that on merits, we may also notice that the plea raised on behalf of Respondents that the presentation made in terms of Article 309 of the Construction of India, as appreciated in its relatability to the provisions of Section 14 and 3(q) of the Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985 also merits acceptance. The latter rule formulation categorically indicates the contours of the Tribunals jurisdiction. The finding qua the non-applicability of the view obtained by the Honble Apex judicial dispensation in the case of Management of Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (supra) having been found to be inapplicable to the facts and circumstances of the case, we are clear in our mind that the Tribunal has no jurisdiction to try it.
16. In the light of the foregoing discussion, we have no manner of reservation in holding that this O.A. is not maintainable before this Tribunal and deserves to be negatived. Ordered accordingly.
(JUSTICE S.D.ANAND)
MEMBER(J)
(KHUSHIRAM)
MEMBER(A)
Dated: March 12 , 2012
`bss
1
(OA No. 1094-PB of 2011)