The applicant has taken out Judge's Summons, inter alia, with a prayer to direct the Official Liquidator to pay an amount of Rs.70,000/- to the applicant as per the judgment and order dated 22.09.2009, passed by the Industrial Tribunal, in Appeal (IC) No.56 of 2008.
The Judge's Summons are accompanied by an affidavit of the applicant, wherein it is stated that the applicant was working as a permanent employee of M/s.Patel Mills Company (in liquidation). The services of the applicant were terminated by the management of the Company in liquidation, leading the applicant to raise an industrial dispute by filing T.Application No.388 of 1992. The Labour Court, Ahmedabad, by its order dated 17.11.2006, held that the termination of the applicant was illegal and in lieu of reinstatement and other benefits, granted a lumpsum compensation of Rs.35,000/- to the applicant. Aggrieved by the abovementioned order, the applicant filed an appeal before the Industrial Tribunal, which was registered as Appeal (IC) No.56 of 2008. The Industrial Tribunal partly allowed the appeal and modified the order passed by the Labour Court, by enhancing the amount of compensation from Rs.35,000/- to Rs.70,000/-, by judgment and order dated 22.09.2009 (annexed as Annexure-A to the affidavit). Pursuant thereto, the applicant registered his claim before the office of the Official Liquidator by submitting an application supported with "Proof of Debt" (Annexure-B to the affidavit). It is the case of the applicant that till date, the office of the Official Liquidator has not examined his claim, nor has released the amount of Rs.70,000/-, as per the order passed by the Industrial Tribunal.
The Official Liquidator (of the Company in liquidation) has submitted a Report dated 30.05.2012, wherein it is stated that though the applicant claims to be a worker of the Company (in liquidation) and claims to have worked in the Winding Department as a Technician, he was terminated by the said Company in liquidation with effect from 08.08.1992. Thereafter, he filed T.Application before the Labour Court and an appeal against the order of the Labour Court. The lumpsum compensation of Rs.35,000/- granted by the Labour Court was enhanced to Rs.70,000/- by the Industrial Tribunal. The stand taken by the Official Liquidator is that the applicant was not a worker on the date of the passing of the winding-up order, that is, on 22.01.1996, therefore, he was not considered by the Chartered Accountant in his verification Report, in respect of the claim of the workers of the abovenamed Company. It has further been stated that the claims of the workers under Section 529 of the Companies Act, 1956 ("the Act" for short) in the matter of the Company in liquidation have already been paid by the Official Liquidator and the claims under Section 530 of the Act have been forwarded to the Chartered Accountant for verification, therefore, the claim of the applicant for the amount of Rs.75,000/- is required to be verified by the Chartered Accountant.
Heard Mr.U.T.Mishra, learned advocate for the applicant, Dr.Amee Yajnik, learned advocate for the Official Liquidator and perused the averments made in the application and the material on record.
A perusal of the order of the Industrial Tribunal dated 22.09.2009, made in Appeal (IC) No.56 of 2008 in T.Application No.388 of 1992, would go to show that the Official Liquidator has been impleaded as respondent No.2. In paragraph-2 of the said order, it has been clearly mentioned that the respondents, that is, the General Manager of the Company in liquidation and the Official Liquidator, have not appeared in spite of service of notices. The Industrial Tribunal has, therefore, proceeded on the basis of the material before it and has enhanced the compensation awarded to the applicant by the Labour Court from Rs.35,000/- to Rs.70,000/- as there was no challenge to the appeal of the applicant. It has been stated by the learned advocate for the applicant, and not denied by the learned counsel for the Official Liquidator, that the order of the Industrial Tribunal enhancing the compensation to Rs.70,000/- has not been challenged by the Official Liquidator in any judicial proceedings and has attained finality. In this view of the matter, as there was no challenge to the claim of the applicant before the Labour Court and the Industrial Tribunal, and as the order of the Industrial Tribunal has attained finality, the applicant has registered his claim before the Official Liquidator for payment of Rs.70,000/- as per the order of the Industrial Tribunal. In the above circumstances, the stand taken by the Official Liquidator in the Report cannot be countenanced, as the amount of compensation duly granted by a Competent Forum, in legal and valid proceedings, that have remained unchallenged, cannot be put to scrutiny and verification by the Chartered Accountant. In my view, this would amount to nothing less than judicial impropriety, which cannot be permitted. Had the Official Liquidator harboured any doubts regarding the veracity of the claim of the applicant, it was open to him to contest the same not only before the Labour Court, but also before the Industrial Tribunal. Having chosen not to appear before the said Forums, it is not open to the Official Liquidator at this stage, to say that the claim of the applicant is required to be verified by the Chartered Accountant. No other objection has been made by the Official Liquidator to the claim of the applicant. At this belated stage, it does not lie in the mouth of the Official Liquidator to say that the applicant was not a worker on the date of the winding-up order. No material has been produced on record to suggest that the Company in liquidation has challenged the order of the Industrial Tribunal or that it has been modified or set aside.
In view of the above discussion, the following order:
The application is allowed. The applicant shall submit the proof of identity to the office of the Official Liquidator, after scrutiny of which the Official Liquidator shall make the payment of Rs.70,000/- to the applicant.
(Smt.
Abhilasha Kumari, J.) (sunil) Top