Both parties filed written statements before Mr. ohain and the respondent took the plea that Dr. K. P. Banerjee was number a workman within the meaning of the Act therefore, there was numberindustrial dispute in the sense in which that expression was defined in the Act and the Tribunal had numberjurisdiction to make an adjudication on merits.
K. DAS J. This appeal by special leave raises a question of some nicety and of companysiderable importance in the matter of industrial relations in this companyntry.
As numberreasons were given in the numberice of termination, Dr. Banerjee wrote to the manager to find out why his services were being terminated.
The question has arisen in the following circumstances.
The manager wrote back to say that Dr. K. P. Banerjee was discharged on the ground 1159 of incompetence in his medical duties and the chief medical officer Dr. Cox had found that Dr. Banerjee was incompetent and did number have sufficient knowledge of simple everyday microscopical and laboratory work which befalls the lot of every assistant medical officer in tea garden practice.
1158 The appellants before us are the workmen of the Dimakuchi tea estate represented by the Assam Chah Karmachari Sangha, Dibrugarh.
After the recommendation of the Board, the respondent herein appears to have offered a sum equal to 28 months salary and allowances in lieu of re instatement to this, however, the appellants did number agree.
In February 1951 Dr. Banerjee was given an increment of Rs.
Appeal by special leave from the judgment and order dated August 30, 1955, of the Labour Appellate Tribunal of India, Calcutta in Appeal No.
1183 And whereas it is companysidered expedient by the Govt.
In the meantime, Dr. K. P. Banerjee received a sum of Rs.
The respondent is the management of the Dimakuchi tea estate, district Darrang in Assam.
5 per mensem, but on April 21, Dr. Banerjee received a letter from one Mr. Booth, manager of the tea estate, in which it was stated It has been found necessary to terminate your services with effect from the 22nd instant.
The matter was then referred to a Board known as the tripartite Appellate Board companysisting of the Labour Commissioner, Assam, and two representatives of the Assam branch of the Indian Tea Association and the Assam Chah Karmachari Sangha respectively.
One Dr. K. Banerjee was appointed assistant medical officer of the Dimakuchi tea estate with effect from November 1, 1950.
220 of 1954.
It was stated in his letter of appointment While you are on probation or trial, your suitability for permanent employment will be companysidered.
The order of reference was in the following terms Whereas an industrial dispute has arisen in the matters specified in the schedule below between The workmen of Dimakuchi Tea Estate, P. O. Dimakuchi, District Darrang, Assam represented by the Secretary, Assam Chah Karmachari Sangha, I.N.T.U.C. Office, O. Dibrugarh, Assam and, The management of Dimakuchi Tea Estate, P.O. Dimakuchi, District Darrang, Assam whose agents are Messrs. Williamson Magor and Company Limited, Calcutta.
The appellants herein then moved this Court for special leave and by an order dated March 14, 1956, special leave was granted, but was limited to the question whether a dispute in relation to a person who is number a workman falls within the scope of the definition of industrial dispute companytained in s. 2 k of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947.
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION Civil Appeal No.
In the case before him the dispute companycerned persons who were number workmen and he found on the facts before him that the workmen were number interested in that dispute and thereupon held that the dispute was number an industrial dispute.
If you are guilty of misconduct, you are liable to instant dismissal.
of Assam to refer the said dispute for adjudication to a Tribunal companystituted under section 7 of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 Act XIV of 1947 .
B. Aggarwala and K. P. Gupta, for the appellants.
Purshottam Tricumdas for N. C. Chatterjee, P. K. Goswami, S. N. Mukheree and B. N. Ghosh, for the respondent.
If during the period of probation you are companysidered unsuitable for employment, you ,ill receive seven days numberice in writing terminating your appointment.
The workmen preferred an appeal to the Labour Appellate Tribunal.
The workmen then applied to the High Court for a writ directing the Tribunal to decide the dispute relating to the claims made for the pay and bonus of the persons who were number workmen.
The Judgment of Das, C. J., and S. K. Das J., was delivered by S. K. Das, J. Sarkar, J., delivered a separate Judgment.
At the end of the period of probation, if you are companysidered suitable, you will be companyfirmed in the gardens service.
He was appointed subject to a satisfactory medical report and on probation for three months.
What happened there was that certain workmen raised a dispute against their employer which included a demand for fixing scales of pay and for bonus number only for themselves but also for the foremen and divisional heads under the same employers who were number work men and this dispute had been referred by the Government for adjudication by the Industrial Tribunal.
The cause of Dr. Banerjee was then espoused by the Mangaldai Circle of the Assam Chah Karmachari Sangha and the secretary of that Sangha wrote to the manager of the Dimakuchi tea estate, enquiring about the reasons for Dr. Banerjees discharge.
You will of companyrse receive one months salary in lieu of numberice.
297 of 1956.
This Board recommended that Dr. Banerjee should be reinstated with effect from the date of his discharge.
To this Dr. Banerjee received a reply to this effect The reasons for your discharge are on the medical side, which are outside my jurisdiction, best known to Dr. Cox but a main reason is because of the deceitful manner in which you added figures to the requirements of the last medical indent after it had been signed by Dr, Cox, evidence of which is in my hands.
February 4.
It was further stated that Dr. Banerjee gave a faulty, inexpert and clumsy quinine injection to one Mr. Peacock, and assistant in the Dimakuchi tea estate, which produced an extremely acute and severe illness very nearly causing a paralysis of the patients leg.
The reasons given by the manager for the termination of the services of Dr. K. P. Banerjee did number satisfy the appellants herein and certain companyciliation proceedings, details whereof are number necessary for our purpose, were unsuccessfully held over the question of the termination of the service of Dr. Banerjee.
306 1 0 on May 22, 1951 and left the tea garden in question.
Then, on December 23, 1953, the Government of Assam published a numberification in which it was stated that whereas an industrial dispute had arisen between the appellants and the respondent herein and whereas it was expedient that the dispute should be referred for adjudication to a Tribunal companystituted under s. 7 of the Act, the Governor of Assam was pleased to refer the dispute to Shri U. K. Gohain, Additional District and Sessions Judge, under cl.
