1 WP NO.4556-10 IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION WRIT PETITION NO.4556 OF 2010 M/s. SDM Products Pvt. Ltd. ..Petitioner. V/s. Employee Provident Fund Organisation & Ors. ..Respondents. Mr. A.D. Patwardhan for petitioner. Mrs. S.V. Bharucha for respondent. CORAM : J.P.DEVADHAR, J. DATED : 27TH JULY, 2010. P.C. :- 1. Heard learned counsel for the parties. Rule, made returnable forthwith. 2. Learned Counsel for the respondent waives service. By consent of the parties, petition is taken up for final hearing. 3. This petition is filed to challenge the ex-parte order dated 19/06/2008 passed by the Assistant Provident Fund Commissioner, Regional Office, Pune under Section 7A of the Provident Fund and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952. By the said order, the provident fund payable for the period from March 2000 to February, 2004 was computed. The grievance of the petitioner is that the establishment in question was admittedly closed prior to 2003. Since the establishment was closed, the notices sent at the office address were returned back. It is only when the 2 WP NO.4556-10 notice was sent to the residential address, the petitioner took effective steps for setting aside the ex-parte order. 4. As the Review Application filed by the petitioner was dismissed, the present petition is filed. 5. As noted earlier, the establishment was closed prior to 2003, however, the liability to pay the provident fund is determined upto February, 2004, that is, for the period even after the establishment was closed. In this view of the matter, in my view, it would be just and proper to set aside the impugned order and remand the matter back for de novo consideration. 6. Accordingly, the impugned order dated 19/6/2008 is quashed and set aside. The Assistant Provident Fund Commissioner, Regional Office, Pune is directed to hear the matter afresh under the provisions of Section 7A of the Employees Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952 in accordance with law. The counsel for the petitioner states that the petitioner would appear before the Assistant Provident Fund Commissioner, Regional Office, Pune on 13th August, 2010. The Assistant Provident Fund Commissioner, Regional Office, Pune is directed to dispose of the matter within four weeks thereafter. 6. Rule is made absolute in above terms with no order as to costs. (J.P. DEVADHAR, J.)