1 in the high court of karnataka gulbarga bench dated this the 16th

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IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA
GULBARGA BENCH
DATED THIS THE 16TH DAY OF SEPTEMBER, 2014
BEFORE
THE HON’BLE MR.JUSTICE S.N.SATYANARAYANA
WRIT PETITION NOs.100528/2013
C/w 83777/2012, 80870/2011, 83778/2012, 84841/2011(L-PG)
WP NO 100528 OF 2013
BETWEEN
THE DIVISIONAL CONTROLLER
NEKRTC, GULBARGA DIVISION
GULBARGA,
BY ITS CHIEF LAW OFFICER
... PETITIONER
(By SMT : RATHNA N SHIVAYOGIMATH, ADV
& SMT.SHAILAJA C.D. ADV.,)
AND
1.
THE DEPUTY LABOUR COMMISSIONER
AND THE APPELLATE AUTHORITY UNDER
PAYMENT OF GRATUITY ACT,
GULBARGA 585 102.
2.
THE ASSISTANT LABOUR COMMISSIONER
AND CONTROLLING AUTHORITY,
UNDER THE PAYMENT OF GRATUITY ACT,
DIVISION-4, KARMIKA BHAVAN,
BANNERGHATTA ROAD,
BANGALORE .
3.
SMT. ASHALATHA W/O LATE SIDDARAMAPPA
AGED ABOUT 46 YEARS.
4.
SHIVA KUMAR S/O SIDDARAMAPPA
AGED ABOUT 29 YEARS.
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5.
6.
ANIL KUMAR S/O SIDDARAMPPA
AGED ABOUT 28 YEARS.
NANDA KUMAR S/O SIDDARAMAPPA
AGED ABOUT 26 YEARS.
ALL R/O NEAR LAL HANUMAN TEMPLE,
BASAVALINGA NAGAR
SHAH BAZAAR
GULBAGA.
... RESPONDENTS
(By SRI : MANVENDRA REDDY, GA R1 AND R2)
THIS WP FILED UNDER ARTICLES 226 AND 227 OF THE
CONSTITUTION OF INDIA, PRAYING TO ISSUE A WRIT OF
CERTIORARI, QUASHING THE IMPUGNED ORDER DATED 4.9.2012
RESPONDENT
IN
APPEAL
NO
PASSED
BY
THE
1ST
GPÁUÀÄ/¦fJ/C¦Ã¯ï/¹Dgï/No.22/2010-11 VIDE ANNEXURE-'B' AND
THE ORDER DATED 15.12.2009 PASSED BY THE 2ND RESPONDENT
IN ALC PGA 1/2007 VIDE ANNEXURE-'A' IN THIS WRIT PETITION.
WP NO 83777 OF 2012
BETWEEN
THE DIVISIONAL CONTROLLER,
N.E.K.R.T.C., GULBARGA DIVISION,
GULBARGA,
BY ITS CHIEF LAW OFFICER.
(By SHIVAYOGIMATH ASSOCIATES, ADVs.,)
AND
1.
2.
THE DEPUTY LABOUR COMMISSIONER
AND THE APPELLATE AUTHORITY
UNDER PAYMENT OF GRATUITY ACT,
GULBARGA 585 102.
THE ASSISTANT LABOUR COMMISSIONER
AND CONTROLLING AUTHORITY,
UNDER THE PAYMENT OF GRATUITY ACT,
... PETITIONER
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DIVISION-4, KARMIKA BHAVAN,
BANNERGHATTA ROAD,
BANGALORE 02.
3.
SRI. SHANKAR S/O NAGAPPA BIBILI
AGE: MAJOR, OCC: RETD., CONDUCTOR,
R/O NEAR SHAHAPUR MASEED,
BASAVAKALYAN, BIDAR 584 102.
... RESPONDENTS
(R1 TO R3 ARE SD)
THIS WP FILED UNDER ARTICLES 226 AND 227 OF THE
CONSTITUTION OF INDIA, PRAYING TO ISSUE A WRIT OF
CERTIORARI, QUASHING THE IMPUGNED ORDER DATED
22.11.2010 PASSED BY THE 1ST RESPONDENT IN APPEAL NO.
11/2010-11 PRODUCED VIDE ANNEXURE-'B' AND THE ORDER
DATED 15.12.2009 PASSED BY 2ND RESPONDENT IN ALC PGA
63/2007 PRODUCED VIDE ANNEXURE-'A' IN THIS WRIT PETITION.
WP NO 80870 OF 2011
BETWEEN
THE DIVISIONAL CONTROLLER,
NORTH EAST KARNATAKA ROAD
TRANSPORT CORPORATION (NEKRTC)
BIDAR DVN. BIDAR,
R/BY ITS CHIEF LAW OFFICER
CENTRAL OFFICE, SARIGE SADANA
GULBARGA.
... PETITIONER
(By Sri : SHIVASHANKAR H MANUR, ADV.,)
AND
BABURAO S/O BHEEMANNA
OCC: RETD. DRIVER P.NO.3649
DEPOT NO.2, GULBARGA
R/O : KAMALAPUR
TQ:DIST: GULBARGA
(By SRI : P VILAS KUMAR, ADV.,)
... RESPONDENT
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THIS WP FILED UNDER ARTICLES 226 AND 227 OF THE
CONSTITUTION OF INDIA, PRAYING TO ISSUE A WRIT OF
CERTIORARI, QUASHING THE IMPUGNED ORDER DATED
31.12.2010 PASSED BY THE DEPUTY LABOUR COMMISSIONER,
GULBARGA-REGIONAL OFFICE, GULBARGA, IN PGA APPEAL NO.
18/2009-10 PRODUCED VIDE ANNEXURE-'A' AND THE ORDER
DATED 25.11.2009 PASSED BY THE ASSISTANT LABOUR
COMMISSIONER, GULBARGA-DIVISION, GULBARGA, IN ALC PGA SR
NO. 25/2008 PRODUCED VIDE ANNEXURE-'B' IN THIS WRIT
PETITION.
WP NO 83778 OF 2012
BETWEEN
THE DIVISIONAL CONTROLLER,
N.E.K.R.T.C., GULBARGA DIVISION,
GULBARGA,
BY ITS CHIEF LAW OFFICER
... PETITIONER
(By SHIVAYOGIMATH ASSOCIATES, ADVs.,)
AND
1.
THE DEPUTY LABOUR COMMISSIONER
AND THE APPELLATE AUTHORITY UNDER
PAYMENT OF GRATUITY ACT,
GULBARGA
2.
THE ASSISTANT LABOUR COMMISSIONER
AND CONROLLING AUTHORITY UNDER
THE PAYMENT OF GRATUITY ACT,
DIVISION-4, KARMIKA BHAVAN,
BANNERGHATTA ROAD,
BANGALORE 02.
3.
SRI. K.MOINUDDIN, S/O MOHAMMAD HUSSAIN
AGE: MAJOR, OCC: RETD. DRIVER,
R/O BULUND PARVEZ COLONY,
RING ROAD,
GULBARGA 585 102.
... RESPONDENTS
( R1 & R2 ARE SD)
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THIS WP FILED UNDER ARTICLES 226 AND 227 OF THE
CONSTITUTION OF INDIA, PRAYING TO QUASH THE IMPUGNED
ORDER DATED 22.11.2010 PASSED BY THE 1ST RESPONDENT
APPEAL NO.10/2010-11 VIDE ANNEX. AND THE ORDER DATED
15.12.2009 PASSED BY THE 2ND RESPONDENT IN NO.ALC:PGA-642007 VIDE ANNEX.B RESPECTIVELY.
WP NO 84841 OF 2011
BETWEEN
THE DIVISIONAL CONTROLLER,
NORTH EAST KARNATAKA ROAD
TRANSPORT CORPORATION (NEKRTC)
BELLARY-DIVISION, BELLARY
RPE.BY ITS CHIEF LAW OFFICER,
CENTRAL OFFICE, SARIGE SADANA,
GULBARGA 585 103.
... PETITIONER
(By SRI : SHIVASHANKAR H MANUR, ADV.,)
AND
B.V. AWARADI,
RTD. TRAFFIC CONTROLLER,
C/O H Y MADIWALAR,
EX. CONDUCTOR,
NEAR FLOOR MILL,
4TH CROSS, DEVE NAGAR,
BELLARY 583101.
... RESPONDENT
( R1 SERVED)
THIS WP FILED UNDER ARTICLES 226 AND 227 OF THE
CONSTITUTION OF INDIA, PRAYING TO QUASH THE IMPUGNED
ORDER
DATED
7.12.2010
PASSED
BY
THE
DEPUTY
COMMISSIONER, GULBARGA REGIONAL OFFICE, GULBARGA IN
PGA APPEAL NO.18/2010-11 PRODUCED VIDE ANNEX.A AND THE
ORDER DATED 31.05.2010 PASSED BY ASSISTANT LABOUR
COMMISSIONER, BELLARY-DIVISION, DAVANGERI, IN ALC PGA SR
NO. 31/2007-08 PRODUCED VIDE ANNEXURE-B IN THIS WRIT
PETITION.
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THESE WRIT PETITIONS COMING ON FOR PRELIMINARY
HEARING THIS DAY, THE COURT MADE THE FOLLOWING:-
ORDER
NEKRTC is the petitioner in all these petitions. Basically,
the challenge in all these petitions is with reference to the order
passed by the Assistant Labour Commissioner and Controlling
Authority
under
the
Payment
of
Gratuity
Act
(‘Labour
Commissioner’ for short).
2.
The grievance of the petitioner corporation is that its
employees, who are some of the respondents in each of the
petitions have approached the Labour Commissioner seeking
fixation of the amount of gratuity, which is required to be paid to
them on superannuation of their service. While calculating the
gratuity for each of the employees, the Labour Commissioner
would have to adopt one of the two methods which are available;
the first method is taking 15 days basic and equivalent DA and
multiplying the same by number of qualifying years of service of
the employee; the second method is taking the basic pay of one
month and multiplying it by number of qualifying years of
service.
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3.
The
petitioner-corporation
submits
that
the
procedure adopted by petitioner corporation is normally to follow
the second method for arriving at the gratuity payable to the
retiring employee. Whereas in the proceedings initiated before
the Labour Commissioner, the said authority instead of following
one of the aforesaid two methods, has deviated from that and
adopted third method i.e., taking one month’s basic along with
proportionate DA payable to that and multiplying the same by
number of qualifying years of service of employee to arrive at the
gratuity, thereby causing monetary loss to the corporation.
Hence, these petitions are filed seeking quashing of the order
impugned in these petitions passed in respect of each of the
employees who have approached the Labour Commissioner.
4.
Heard the learned counsel for the petitioner-
corporation as well as contesting respondents and the learned
Government Advocate representing the Labour Commissioner.
On going through the material on record and also after noticing
that under similar circumstances the coordinate bench of this
Court has felt that the mistake committed by the Labour
Commissioner will have to be corrected by it by reassessing the
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gratuity and accordingly disposed of a batch of writ petitions
which were earlier filed by the very same corporation in
W.P.No.67064/2010 and other connected matters on 1.3.2012.
On going through the said order with the material on record this
Court feel that in these petitions also all the petitions are
required to be remanded to be reconsidered by the Labour
Commissioner for the purpose of calculating the gratuity in the
normal procedure, in which the petitioner corporation would
calculate the gratuity i.e., taking one month’s basic and
multiplying it by number of qualifying years of service of
employee, thereby to recalculate the gratuity which each of the
employee is entitled to receive.
5.
So far as W.P.No.84841/2011 is concerned, the
respondent-employee had earlier filed one more petition in
WP.No.83016/2009 which was disposed of on 16.6.2011.
Therefore, the Labour Commissioner while considering his
petition will have to look into the order, if any, passed in the
earlier proceedings and to ensure that there is no repetition of
gratuity awarded in his matter twice.
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6.
With the aforesaid observations and directions,
these writ petitions are allowed and the matters are remanded
back to the Assistant Labour Commissioner and Controlling
Authority under the Payment of Gratuity Act to reassess the
gratuity payable to each of the respondent-employee in these
petitions.
Sd/JUDGE.
nd

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