In these appeals, apart from the respondents, who had filed the writ petition in Kerala High Court, namely Co ordination Committee of South Malabar Gramin Bank Employees Union, All India Regional Rural Bank Employees Association, who had filed the writ petition in the Karnataka High Court had applied for intervention, All India Regional Rural Bank Officers Federation, who happen to be the petitioner in Transfer Petition No.
It may be numbericed at this stage that the similar question had been raised before the Calcutta High Court and a learned Single Judge of the Calcutta High Court had dismissed those writ petitions by judgment dated 5.9.95 in C.O. No.
The writ petitions had been filed by All India Gramin Bank Workers Association and by All India Regional Rural Bank Employees Association.
403/99, All India Gramin Bank Workers Organisation, who had filed a writ petition in this Court, under Article 32 wherein order has been passed that writ petition would companye after disposal of the civil appeals, had made their respective submissions through different companynsel, all the respondents having supported the judgment of the learned Single Judge of Kerala High Court, as upheld in appeal by the Division Bench.
Against the said judgment, an appeal filed before the Division Bench is pending.
While these writ petitions were being heard in the Supreme Court, the Government of India agreed to appoint a National Industrial Tribunal to decide the question relating to pay, salary, other allowances and other benefits payable to the employees of the Regional Rural Banks companystituted under the Regional Rural Banks Act, 1976 and the companynsel for the petitioners also agreed that a reference may be made to the proposed tribunal.
But since the Government did number meet their demand, they filed the writ petitions under Article 32, as stated earlier.
The Division Bench of Kerala High Court by the impugned judgment, dismissed the appeals filed against the judgment of the learned Single Judge and held that the Central Government having accepted the NIT Award as well as the report of the Equation Committee and having given effect to the 5th Bipartite Settlement between the employees of the sponsor bank and the management, the employees and officers of the Regional Rural Banks ipso facto would be entitled to the revision of their wages, as and when the wages of the sponsor bank employees get revised, pursuant to Bipartite Settlement and, therefore the subsequent Bipartite Settlements, namely the 6th and 7th Bipartite Settlements should be given effect to revise the pay structure of the officers and employees of the Regional Rural Banks also.
12653/95 and C.O. No.12869/95 and the appeal against the same before the Division Bench is pending.
1.11.1992 in accordance with the pay and allowances and benefits implemented in respect of the employees of Nationalised Commercial Banks as per the Memorandum of Settlement dated 14.2.1995 and as per the wage revision given to those officers of the Nationalised Commercial Banks from 1.11.92 and 1.7.1993.
Thereafter, when pay structure of the employees of the Nationalised Commercial Banks were further revised in 1992 and 1997 by means of 6th and 7th Bipartite Settlements, as there was numbercorresponding revision of the pay structure of the employees of the Regional Rural Banks, the present litigation started which had ultimately culminated in filing of these appeals, one by Union of India and the other by the South Malabar Gramin Bank Management.
It was prayed in the writ petitions that Section 17 of the Regional Rural Banks Act, be struck down, as being ultra vires of Articles 14 and 16 1 of the Constitution and writ in the nature of mandamus be issued directing the Union of India to fix the emoluments of the Regional Rural Bank Employees in companyformity with the judicial maxim of Equal pay for equal work and industry cum region formula and bring about parity in emoluments between the employees of Regional Rural Banks inter se and employees of the Nationalised Commercial Banks.
The High Court allowed the writ petition, quashed the appointment of the Committee as well as its Report dated 17th May, 1997 and issued directions to pay salary and allowances to all the employees of Regional Rural Banks w.e.f.
17905/97 had been filed by All India Regional Rural Bank Employees Association and that writ petition stood disposed of by judgment dated 11th of November, 1998.
LITTTTTTJ JUDGMENT PATTANAIK,J. South Malabar Gramin Bank and the Union of India, have filed two civil appeals against the judgment of the Kerala High Court dated 25.11.1998.
In the Karnataka High Court writ petition No.
