Bihar State Elect.Board & Anr vs Ram Deo Prasad Singh & Ors

2. The appellants, Bihar State Electricity Board and its Chairman were the defendants in a suit filed by respondents 1 to 8, the plaintiffs. The respondents were the workmen of the Board and at the material time, i.e., in 2 the year 1974 they were working as security guards at Patratu Thermal Power Station, Hazaribagh. They were proceeded against on certain charges of misconduct. In the domestic enquiry the charges were established and on the basis of the findings of the domestic enquiry, they were dismissed from service on November 11, 1975. After 4 years of dismissal from service they filed a suit (T.S. No. 95/1979) in the court of Munsiff V, Patna, seeking declarations that their dismissal was bad, unconstitutional and inoperative in law and they would be legally deemed to have continued in service.

3. The trial court allowed the suit by judgment and decree dated August 29, 1981. The appeal preferred by the appellants against the judgment and decree passed by the trial court (Title Appeal No. 147 of 1981/62/2004) was dismissed by the Additional District Judge, fast track court No. 2, Patna, by judgment dated January 18, 2006. The appellants, then, brought the matter before the High Court in second appeal (SA No. 97 of 2006) but this too was dismissed by judgment and order dated September 22, 2008. The appellants are now before this Court assailing the judgments and decree passed against them.

7. The High Court is wrong on all scores. The fact that the appeal against the judgment and decree passed by the Munsiff was filed before the bifurcation of the State and on the appointed date (November 15, 2000) the appeal was already pending before the Additional District Judge has no bearing on the issue. Section 89 relates to proceedings pending on the appointed date and not to proceeding that might be filed after that date. Secondly, the objection in regard to the territorial jurisdiction, raised before the trial court was in an altogether different context. The objection before the trial court was based on the ground that the plaintiffs-workmen were working at Patratu Thermal Power Station and their dismissal had taken place there. The cause of action having arisen at Patratu, the suit ought to have been filed before a court under whose territorial jurisdiction Patratu Thermal Power Station is situate. The objection was not pressed before the trial court presumably because the head office of the Board being at Patna it was believed that the plaintiffs could file the suit at Patna as well. But the objection taken before the Munsiff, whether pressed or given up, could have no bearing on the transfer of the proceedings on the bifurcation of the State in terms of section 89 of the Reorganisation Act.

14. It may be recalled that the respondents were dismissed from service on November 11, 1975. They filed the suit four years later at Patna and tried to overcome the bar of limitation by pleading that they first came to know about their dismissal from service when they went to collect their wages in October, 1976. The Munsiff strangely accepted the plea.

24. We may, however, in relation to principle No. 2 stated above hasten to add that there will hardly be a dispute which will be an industrial dispute within the meaning of Section 2(k) of the Act and yet will be one arising out of a right or liability under the general or common law only and not under the Act. Such a contingency, for example, may arise in regard to the dismissal of an unsponsored workman which in view of the provision of law contained in Section 2A of the Act will be an industrial dispute even though it may otherwise be an individual dispute. Civil Courts, therefore, will have hardly an occasion to deal with the type of cases falling under principle No. 2. Cases of industrial disputes by and large, almost invariably, are bound to be covered by principle No. 3 stated above."

17. We, thus, come to the inescapable conclusion that the plaintiffs- respondents' suit was itself not maintainable and was liable to be dismissed. 1

18. For the reasons discussed above the appeal is allowed. The judgments and decree coming under challenge are set aside and the suit filed by the plaintiffs-respondents is dismissed.

19. In the facts of the case there will be no order as to costs.

September 8, 2011.