.^ w HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR DIVIStON BENCH SHRI RAJEEV GUPTA, C.J. SHRI DHIRENDRA MISHRA, J. LP.No.1197 of 2004 PETITIONER Versus RESPONDENTS Dr. M.P. Chandrakar, Executive Director, Chandulal Chandrakar Memorial Hospital, G.E. Road, Bhilai, District Durg (C.G.) 1.3tate of Chhattisgarh, through the Secretary, to the Govt. of Chhattisgarh, Department of Labour, D.K.S. Mantralaya Bhawan, Raipur(C.G.) 2.Assistant Labour Commissioner, Durg Office of ALC, Stadium Complex, Durg (C.G.) Present : Shri Pradeep Saxena, counsel for the petitloner. Shri Vinav Harit, Dv. A.G. for the respondents. ORDER ith (19'"February,2008) The following order of the Court was passed by Rajeev Gupta, C.J. Learned counsel for the parties are heard on admission. 2) Petitioner Dr MP Chandrakar, Executive Director, Chandulal Chandrakar Memorial Hospital, GE Road, Bhilai, District Durg (CG) has filed this writ petition for the following reliefs : *itfli-*nauiiuuMyhI-"lun^wsesssassaawsK.^t^f^wsuwtisosusit^^a^p Btt I) declare impugned notification No.2012/3426/2/lab/ 2001 Dt.17.09.2001s (Annexure P/1) to be ultra vires sub-section (1) of Section 20 ofthe Minimum Wages Act, 1948, (1 1 of1948) ii) quash the impugned notiflcation (Annexure P/1) by issuance of writ of certiorari, iii) issue a writ of prohibition restraining all the Assistant Labour Commissioners from exercising the powers of Authority under Section 20 of the Minimum Wages Act, and iv) declare all the actions of the Assistant Labour Commissioners and all orders passed by them In the exercise of the alleged impugned powers to be beyond jurisdiction and hence void ab initio. v) any other relief/s which this Hon'ble Court deems fit in the circumstancesof the case. 3) The petitioner in substance is seeking quashing of the notification dated 17.09.2001 (Annexure P/.1) on the ground that the same is uttra Vires to sub-Section 1 of Section 20 of the Minimum Wages Act, 1948 (henceforth "the Act"). 4) The State Government vide notiflcation dated 17 September, 2001 appointed all the Commissioners for workmen compensation as authority to hear all claims arising out of the payment of less than the minimum rate of wages and including al! matters incidental to such claims under sub-Section (i) Section of the said Act and exercise the powers within the area of their respective jurisdiction. 5) Section 20 of the Act reads as follows : ;»»", 3 "20. Claims - (1) The appropriate Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint [any Commissioner for Workmen's Compensation or any Officer of the Centra! Government exercising functions as a Labour Commissioner for any region, or any officer of the State Government not below the rank-of Labour Commissioner or any] other offlcer with experience as a Judge of a Civil Court or as a stjpendiary Magistrate to be the authority to hear and decide for any specifled area all clalms arising out of payment of less than the minimum rates of wages [or in respect of the payment of remuneration for days of rest or for work done on such days under clause (b) or ciause (c) of sub- section (1) of Section 13 or of wages at the overtime rate under section 14], to employees employed or paid in that area. (2) [Where an employee has any claim of the nature referred to in sub-section (1), the employee himself, or any legal practitioner or any offlcial of a registered trade union authorized in writing to act on his behalf, or any Inspector, or any person acting with the permission of the Authority appointed under sub-section (1), may apply to such Authority for a direction under sub- section (3): Provided that every such applicatlon shall be presented within six months from the date on which the minlmum wages [or other amount] became payable: Provided further that any application may be admitted after the said period of six months when the applicant satisfies the Authority that he had sufficient cause for not making -tbe application within such period. (3) When any application under sub- section (2) is entertained, the Authority shall hear the applicant and the employer, or give them an opportunity of being heard, and after such further inquiry, if any, as it may consider necessary, may without prejudice to any other penalty to which the employer may be liable under this Act, direet - (1) in the case bf a claim arising out of payment of less than the minimum rates of wages, the payment to the :^Tnf( E»'l 11WI BST-^I3Bli^»i&Nt|WSWaW^»SU».W»W'WK!!fW» J^ 4 employee ofthe amount by which the minimum wages payable to him exceed the amount actually paid, together with the payment of such compensation as the authority may think flt, not exceeding ten times the amount of such excess; - (ii) in any other case, the payment of the amount due to the employee, together with the payment of sueh compensation as the Authority may think fit, not exceeding ten rupees, and the Authority may direct payment of such compensation in cases where the excess or the amount due is paid by the employer to the employee before the disposal ofthe application] (4) !f the authority hearing any application under this sectton is satisfied that it was either malicious or vexatious, it may direct that a penalty not exceeding fifty rupees be paid to the employer by the person presenting the application. (5) Any amount directed to be paid under this section may be recovered - (a) if the authority is a Magistrate, by the Authority as if it were a fine imposed by the Authority as a Magistrate, or (b) if the Authority is not a Magistrate, by any Magistrate to whom the Authority makes application in this behalf, as if it were a fine imposed by such Magistrate. (6) Every direction of the Authority under this section shall be final. (7) Every Authority appointed under sub- section (1) shall have all the powers of a Civil Court under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (5 of 1908), for the purpose of taking evidence and of enforcing the attendance of witnesses and compelling the production of documents, and every such Authority shall be deemed to be a Civil Court for al! the purposes of section 195 and 1.3i:I(:R1 !S:Li ni!""ai Chapter XXXV of the Code Procedure, 1898 (5 of 1898) of Criminal 6) Sub-Section (i) of Section 20 was substituted by a state amendment in the State of Madhya Pradesh with the following: "IVIadhya Pradesh - (1) In section 20, for sub- section (1), substitute the following sub-section, namely:- "(1) The appropriate Government may, by notiflcation in the Official Gazette, appoint any Commissioner for Workmen's Compensation or any officer of the Central Government exercising functions as a Labour Commissioner of any region or any officer of the State Government not below therank of Labour Commissioner or any other officer with experience as a Judge of Civil Court or as a stipendiary Magistrate or any Revenue Officer not below the rank of Naib Tahsildar, to be the authority to hear and decide for any specified area all claims arising out of payment of !ess than minimum rates of w@ges or in respect of the payment of remuneration for days of rest or for work done on such days under clause (b) or ciause (c) of subsection (1) of section 13 of wages at the overtime rate under section 14, to employees employed or paid in that area." [Vide Madhya Pradesh Act 36 of 1976, (w.e.f. 16-7-1976)] (2) in sub-section (2), in the proviso, for the words "six months", at both the places they occur, substitute the words "one year"; and (3) To sub-section (4), insert following proviso, namely:- "Provided that nothing in this sub-section shall apply to any application filed by an Inspector under sub-section (2)." [Vide Madhya Pradesh Act 23 of 1961, Sec 12(w.e.f.23-6-1961)] ii;;iir 7) On a bare reading of the above quoted Section 20 of the Act with the amendment in the State of MP, it becomes apparent that Commissioner for workmen compensation can be appointed by the appropriate Government as the authority to hear and decide all claims under the Act. 8) As the appointment of Commissioner for -workmen compensatlon as the prescribed authority under Section 20 of the Act is permissible, we do not find any infirmity in the notification (Annexure P/1) whereby the State of Chhattisgarh has appointed the Commissioners for workmen's compensation as the authority under Section 20, sub-Section (i) of the Act. 9) The writ petition, therefore, is liable to be dismissed and is hereby dismissed summariiy. 10) With the above order, M (W) P No.1077/2004 also stands dismi^ed. ~— Sd/- / Dhirendra Mishra i Judge padma Sd/- ChiefJustice lllllL