Punjab-Haryana High Court
Bidhi Chand Son Of Shri Sant Ram C/O Shri ... vs Haryana State Industrial Development ... on 2 July, 2014
Author: K. Kannan
Bench: K. Kannan
IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA
AT CHANDIGARH
Civil Writ Petition No.453 of 1992 (O&M)
Date of decision:02.07.2014
Bidhi Chand son of Shri Sant Ram C/o Shri Krishan Pal Sharma,
Village and Post Office Railly, Sector 12-A, Panchkula, District
Ambala (Haryana).
... Petitioner
versus
Haryana State Industrial Development Corporation Limited, SCO
No.40-41, Sector 17, Chandigarh (A State Government Undertaking
Registers) through its General Manager, and others.
.... Respondents
CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE K. KANNAN
----
Present: Mr. D.K. Nagar, Advocate,
for the petitioner.
Mr. Chander Pal Tiwana, Advocate,
for Mr. R.S.Chahar, Advocate,
for the respondents.
----
K.Kannan, J. (Oral)
1. The writ petition contains a challenge to the order of termination made to the services of the petitioner who worked as a Chowkidar on daily wage basis. The documents filed in court would show that he had been periodically engaging the Management for regularization of services but it has been repulsed time and again on a plea that he should come through regular recruitment process through employment exchange and that his plea for regularization cannot be considered favourably.
Kumar Sanjeev 2014.07.08 11:23 I attest to the accuracy and integrity of this document Civil Writ Petition No.453 of 1992 (O&M) -2-
2. The trouble started when on 15.11.1991, an inspection was said to have been done in the godown of the respondent- Corporation and it was found that 95 bags of cement were missing. An enquiry was constituted and a report was given by the AGM that the petitioner had not even given a complaint to the police in the manner that he stated and an informal enquiry revealed that Senior Manager and Assistant Manager were themselves responsible for not being vigilant and not taking notice of the theft of articles.
3. Based on the report of the AGM, a decision was taken to dispense with the services of the petitioner and to transfer two other senior officers for the negligent conduct and to take independent departmental action. It is this order of termination which is in challenge in the writ petition.
4. If the petitioner was a temporary employee on daily wages and he had not been regularized, termination could have been a subject of challenge if he had completed continuous service of 240 days and if there was a violation of Section 25-F of the Industrial Disputes Act. The procedure for ventilating the grievance ought to have therefore under the provisions of the Industrial Disputes Act itself and could not have been a subject of challenge by means of a writ petition. If it were to be contended that enquiry was not constituted by issuing a charge-sheet and affording to him an opportunity to explain to termination, then the most crucial issue is Kumar Sanjeev 2014.07.08 11:23 I attest to the accuracy and integrity of this document Civil Writ Petition No.453 of 1992 (O&M) -3- whether the petitioner had a legal right to complain of termination of services. If he was a daily wager and his own services were not regularized, his termination could give rise to an action for damages if any of the principles of natural justice had been violated. I surely notice that the dismissal was summary and it had been foisted with an imputation that he was responsible for the loss. If there was a genuine reason for a complaint by the Management that the petitioner had not even reported the matter to the police, then the proper procedure must have been to join him in a full-fledged enquiry. In this case, the petitioner appears to have given an affidavit that he was tied down by the senior officers whose negligence was stated to be a cause for the loss of the articles. The petitioner's grievance is that he has been made a scapegoat by jettisoning him from service, while the higher level officers who were found guilty were merely transferred out of the place. Since the services of the petitioner himself had not been shown to be regularized and the petitioner himself had not opted for challenging the termination under the more efficacious remedy which was permissible by law through a resort to Section 25-F of the ID Act, I will be loathe to make an intervention for reinstatement. This obtains greater relevance in view of the fact that more than two decades have passed and daily wage earner could not be given the benefit of reinstatement with backwages when there was no security Kumar Sanjeev 2014.07.08 11:23 I attest to the accuracy and integrity of this document Civil Writ Petition No.453 of 1992 (O&M) -4- of tenure available to him.
5. I have already observed that the Management has constituted some form of enquiry without in any way involving the petitioner through issuance of a charge-sheet but has terminated the services by imposing a stigma that he had been responsible for the loss. If it was a case of merely termination simpliciter, a daily wager could have no relief before this court but still he could have shown that there was violation of Section 25-F of the ID Act, if he had brought to evidence that he had 240 days of continuous service. Through an assertion is made that he had been working for more than 10 years since the challenge itself is not for violation of Section 25-F of the ID Act, I would find a proper relief for the petitioner would be to compensate him monetarily to a sum of `15,000/- as payable to him. This is considering the fact that the termination has been without involving the petitioner in any form of enquiry and by casting a stigma in his service. The amount, as determined, shall be payable by the respondent with interest at 6% per annum from the date of termination till date of payment. The liability shall be on the respondent.
6. The impugned order is modified and the writ petition is ordered on the above terms.
(K.KANNAN) JUDGE 02.07.2014 sanjeev Kumar Sanjeev 2014.07.08 11:23 I attest to the accuracy and integrity of this document