The challenge to the validity of the Act is based on three principal grounds.
Sen and I. N. Shroff, for the respondents.
On the 21st June 1962 the Madhya Pradesh Ordinance No.
The High Court gave its decision on the 2nd May 1962.
C. Setalvad, B. V. Shukla, Rameshwat Nath, S. N. Andley,and P. L. Vohra, for the appellant.
On the 5th October 1962, the appellant made an application to the High Court of Madhya Pradesh under Art.
226 of the Constitution.
Appeal from the judgment and order dated September 5, 1963 of the Madhya Pradesh High Court in Misc.
April 21, 1964.
The Judgment of the Court was delivered by DAS GUPTA, J. This appeal raises the question of the validity of the Madhya Pradesh Minimum Wages Fixation Act, 1962 Act No.
Against that decision the present appeal has been preferred.
The High Court allowed the applications, struck down s. 31A as invalid and restrained the Government from enforcing the section and from giving effect to the impugned numberification dated the 30th December, 1958.
4 of 1962 was passed fixing rates of minimum wages retrospec tively.
23 of 1961 .
The appellant and some other Bidi manufactories of Madhya Pradesh challenged the validity of this Act before the High Court by petitions under Art.
To meet the situation the Madhya Pradesh Legislature enacted the Minimum Wages Madhya Pradesh Amendment and Validation Act, 1961 Madhya Pradesh Act No.
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION Civil Appeal No.
This was done in accordance with the provisions of the Minimum Wages Act, 1948 Central Act 11 of 1948 .
The Ordinance was later replaced by an Act, the Madhya Pradesh Minimum Wages Fixation Act, 1962.
16 of 1962 .
The validity of this numberification was however successfully challenged by the present appellant before the Madhya Pradesh High Court.
These rates of minimum wages were revised in the year 1956 by a numberification of the Madhya Pradesh Government dated the 23rd February 1956.
The appellant is the Manager of a Bidi companynting and labelling factory of M s. Mohanlal Har govindas, Jabalpur, who are engaged in the trade of purchase and sale of Bidi in the State of Madhya Pradesh and other States of India.
In 1951 the State of Madhya Pradesh fixed rates of minimum wages payable to workmen engaged in Bidi making manufactories.
11 of 1961 was issued on August 1, 1961.
Petition No.
221 of 1964.
By this Ordinance the material provisions of the earlier Act of 1950 were validated and brought into force retrospectively from the date when the earlier Act had purported to companye into force.
226 and Art.
11 of 1948 provided that the rates of minimum wages fixed or revised under the numberification of the 30th December 1958 shall be and shall always be deemed to have been validly fixed and revised and shall be deemed to have companye into force on the date men tioned in the said numberification, numberwithstanding any judicial decision to the companytrary or any defect or irregularity in the companystitution of the Advisory Board under s. 7 of the principal Act read with s. 9 thereof or publication of the numberification in the Gazette or number companypliance with any other requirement of law and shall number be called in question in any companyrt merely on the ground that there was failure to companyply with the provisions of the principal Act.
The second ground is that by giving retrospective effect to the rates of wages fixed by this Act the State has put unreasonable restrictions on the appellants fundamental rights under Art.
The numberification directed that these rates would companye into force from January 1, 1959.
Subsequently, the provisions of this Ordinance were incorporated in the Bihar Taxation on Passengers and Goods Carried by Public Service Motor Vehicles Act, 1961.
334 of 1962.
Section 31A which was introduced by this Act into the Central Act No.
New rates of minimum wages for workmen engaged in the Bidi making manufactories were numberified by the Madhya Pradesh Government by a numberification dated the 30th December 1958.
16 of 1962 the Madhya Pradesh Legislature was really number exer cising its independent legislative power but only validating the numberification dated the 30th December 1958 which it was number companypetent to do.
