Case: The Factory Manager,Cimmco Wagon Factory Vs. Virendra Kumar Sharma

The contesting respondent claimed that he was appointed as an apprentince by the appellant from 10.9.79 to 21.9.80. After the expiry of the said period, he was on regular service between 22.9.80 to 21.12.1980. As there was look-out in the factory from 7.10.80 to 8.2.81, he was asked by the appellant not to come for work. After the look-out was over, the respondent worked as General Clerk in the assembly shop of the appellant from 9.2.81 to 30.6.82. Thereafter he worked in the vacancy of Shri K.G. Venkatesan till April, 1983. He was given Rs. 250/- per month from 22.9.80 to 30.6.82 and when he demanded salary for the period between 1.7.82 to April, 1983 he was told that his case had been recommended for approval of the higher officers. He was told by the appellant orally not to come for work from 16.6.1983 on the ground that his services were already terminated. It was his further case that he had continuously worked from 9.2.81 to 15.4.83. Hence he was entitled to become permanent worker.4. The appellant resisted the claim of the respondent by filing written statement. It was admitted that the respondent had been appointed as an apprentice between 10.9.79 and 22.9.80 at the request of his father who was already serving in the appellant factory. It was pointed out that between the periods 11.8.81 to 10.12.81 and 11.12.81 to 30.6.82 the respondent had been an apprentice as per Exbts. M2 and M1 respectively. It was sated that neither the respondent was employed by any competent authority in the establishment of the appellant nor he had been paid salary. It is clear from condition No. 5 in Exbts. M1 and M2 that the appellant was not obliged to give job to the respondent after the completion of apprenticeship. The Labour Court after considering the rival contentions, in the light of the evidence brought on record, held that the respondent was not a workman. It also held that presumption that could be raised under Section 103 of the Factories Act, 1948 (for short the `Act) stood rebutted as no appointment letter was given to the respondent; he was neither paid any salary or wages and that the relationship of master and servant did not exist between the appellant and the respondent. In view of the conclusions arrived at, the Labour Court passed the award holding that the respondent was not entitled to any relief from the appellant.5. The respondent challenged the validity and correctness of the said award in the High Court of Rajasthan in S.B. Civil Writ Petition No. 1384/87. The learned Single Judge did not find any good ground to disturb the award passed by the Labour Court, exercising jurisdiction under Article 226 of the Constitution of India. Consequently, the writ petition was dismissed on 6.3.97. The respondent took up the matter in appeal In D.B. Civil Appeal No. 523/97. The Division Bench of the High Court by the impugned order dated 3.12.97 allowed the appeal, set aside the order of the learned Single Judge and allowed the writ petition quashing the award of the Labour Court. Hence this appeal is brought before us by the appellant.

Reasoning:
The presumption available under this Section in the first place is rebuttable and secondly it is available only for the purpose of the said Act. It is also not the case of the respondent that this presumption is made available in relation to an adjudication of a dispute referred to under Section 10 of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947. Section 103 of the Act is included in Chapter X under the heading "Penalties and Procedure" which chapter deals with general penalty for offences, liability of owner of premises in certain circumstances, enhanced penalty after previous conviction etc. The Act provides for the health, safety, welfare, and other aspects of workers in factories. It was enacted to consolidate and the law regulating labour in factories. The presumption under Section 103 of the Act as already noticed above is to be raised for the purposes of the said Act. Even otherwise on the material placed on record when it was factually established that the respondent was not a workman, raising a presumption under Section 103 of the Act in his favour was not correct. At any rate there were no good reasons sustainable in law to upset the finding of fact recorded by the Labour Court based on the evidence placed on record after proper appreciation of the same and more so when the award of the Labour Court was affirmed by the learned Single Judge. Having regard to the facts, circumstances of the case and in the light of the evidence placed on record, it is not possible to accept that there was any unfair labour practice as observed in the impugned order. Thus in view of what is stated above, we find it difficult to sustain the impugned order. Hence the appeal is allowed. The impugned order is set aside and the award of the Labour Court is restored.