WA Nos. 1443, 1458 & 1462 of 2022 v. Director, Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre and others

# **IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM** # **PRESENT** **THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE A.K.JAYASANKARAN NAMBIAR** **&** **THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE MOHAMMED NIAS C.P. TUESDAY, THE 18[TH] DAY OF OCTOBER 2022 / 26TH ASWINA, 1944 WA NO. 1458 OF 2022** **AGAINST THE JUDGMENT IN WP(C) 8000/2020 OF HIGH COURT OF** ## **KERALA** ## **APPELLANT/2ND RESPONDENT:** THE GENERAL SECRETARY ISRO CASUAL WORKERS UNION, KIZHAKKE BUNGALOW, NEDUMANGAD P.O., THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, PIN - 695541 BY ADVS. THOMAS ABRAHAM MERCIAMMA MATHEW ASWIN.P.JOHN R.ANANTHAPADMANABAN PAUL BABY ## **RESPONDENTS/PETITIONER & IST RESPONDENT:** 1 THE DIRECTOR VIKRAM SARABHAI SPACE CENTRE, DEPARTMENT OF SPACE, THUMBA, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, PIN - 695001 2 THE DIRECTOR LIQUID PROPULSION SYSTEM CENTRE, VALIYAMALA, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, PIN - 695547 3 THE CHAIRMAN INDIAN SPACE RESEARCH ORGANIZATION, ANTARIKSH BHAVAN, BANGALORE, PIN - 560094 4 CENTRAL GOVERNMENT INDUSTRIAL TRIBUNAL-CUM-LABOUR COURT,PANAMPILLY NAGAR P.O., ERNAKULAM, PIN - 680016 BY ADV KRISHNA T C, CGC THIS WRIT APPEAL HAVING COME UP FOR ADMISSION ON 18.10.2022, ALONG WITH WA.1443/2022, 1462/2022, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING: WA Nos.1443, 1458 & 1462 of 2022 2 # **IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM** **PRESENT THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE A.K.JAYASANKARAN NAMBIAR** **&** **THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE MOHAMMED NIAS C.P. TUESDAY, THE 18[TH] DAY OF OCTOBER 2022 / 26TH ASWINA, 1944 WA NO. 1443 OF 2022** **AGAINST THE JUDGMENT IN WP(C) 18734/2021 OF HIGH COURT OF** ## **KERALA** ## **APPELLANT/2ND RESPONDENT:** THE GENERAL SECRETARY ISRO CASUAL WORKERS UNION, KIZHAKKE BUNGALOW, NEDUMANGAD P.O., THIRUVANANTHAPURAM , PIN - 695541 BY ADVS. THOMAS ABRAHAM MERCIAMMA MATHEW ASWIN.P.JOHN R.ANANTHAPADMANABAN PAUL BABY ## **RESPONDENTS/PETITIONERS & 1ST RESPONDENT:** 1 THE DIRECTOR VIKRAM SARABHAI SPACE CENTRE, DEPARTMENT OF SPACE, THUMBA, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, PIN - 695001 2 THE DIRECTOR LIQUID PROPULSION SYSTEM CENTRE, VALIYAMALA, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, PIN - 695547 3 THE CHAIRMAN INDIAN SPACE RESEARCH ORGANIZATION, ANTARIKSH BHAVAN, BANGALORE, PIN - 560094 WA Nos.1443, 1458 & 1462 of 2022 **==> picture [8 x 10] intentionally omitted <==** 4 CENTRAL GOVERNMENT INDUSTRIAL TRIBUNAL-CUM-LABOUR COURT PANAMPILLY NAGAR P.O., ERNAKULAM , PIN - 680016 BY ADV KRISHNA T C, CGC THIS WRIT APPEAL HAVING COME UP FOR ADMISSION ON 18.10.2022, ALONG WITH WA.1458/2022 AND CONNECTED CASES, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING: WA Nos.1443, 1458 & 1462 of 2022 4 # **IN THE HIGH COURT OF KERALA AT ERNAKULAM** **PRESENT THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE A.K.JAYASANKARAN NAMBIAR** **&** **THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE MOHAMMED NIAS C.P. TUESDAY, THE 18[TH] DAY OF OCTOBER 2022 / 26TH ASWINA, 1944 WA NO. 1462 OF 2022** **AGAINST THE JUDGMENT IN WP(C) 18443/2021 OF HIGH COURT OF** ## **KERALA** ## **APPELLANT/2ND RESPONDENT:** THE GENERAL SECRETARY ISRO CASUAL WORKERS UNION, KIZHAKKE BUNGALOW, NEDUMANGAD P.O., THIRUVANANTHAPURAM , PIN - 695541 BY ADVS. THOMAS ABRAHAM MERCIAMMA MATHEW ASWIN.P.JOHN R.ANANTHAPADMANABAN ## **RESPONDENTS/PETITIONERS AND 1ST RESPONDENT:** 1 THE DIRECTOR VIKRAM SARABHAI SPACE CENTRE, DEPARTMENT OF SPACE, THUMBA, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, PIN - 695001 2 THE DIRECTOR LIQUID PROPULSION SYSTEM CENTRE, VALIYAMALA, THIRUVANANTHAPURAM , PIN - 695547 3 THE CHAIRMAN INDIAN SPACE RESEARCH ORGANIZATION, ANTARIKSH BHAVAN, BANGALORE, PIN - 560094 4 CENTRAL GOVERNMENT INDUSTRIAL TRIBUNAL-CUM-LABOUR COURT WA Nos.1443, 1458 & 1462 of 2022 **==> picture [8 x 10] intentionally omitted <==** PANAMPILLY NAGAR P.O., ERNAKULAM , PIN - 680016 BY ADV KRISHNA T C, CGC THIS WRIT APPEAL HAVING COME UP FOR ADMISSION ON 18.10.2022, ALONG WITH WA.1458/2022 AND CONNECTED CASES, THE COURT ON THE SAME DAY DELIVERED THE FOLLOWING: WA Nos.1443, 1458 & 1462 of 2022 6 ## **A.K. JAYASANKARAN NAMBIAR & MOHAMMED NIAS C.P., JJ** **…................................................... WA Nos.1443, 1458 & 1462 of 2022 ….............................................................. Dated this the 18[th] day of October, 2022.** ## **JUDGMENT** ## Mohammed Nias.C.P.J The General Secretary, ISRO Casual Workers Union, the second respondent in the writ petitions has filed these writ appeals challenging the judgment in WP(C)Nos.18734 of 2021, 8000 of 2020 and 18443 of 2021, which set aside Ext.P6 preliminary order passed by the Central Government Industrial Tribunal cum Labour Court, that rejected the objection raised by the writ petitioners, the Director, Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre (VSSC) and others regarding the maintainability of the dispute. 2. The appellant-Union had raised a dispute for regularization of contract labour workmen represented by it. The reference was for the composite issues, viz., whether the Industrial Disputes Act is applicable to ISRO and whether the contracts under which 123 workers were engaged is sham or not. The ID was filed in the year WA Nos.1443, 1458 & 1462 of 2022 7 2017. The Tribunal considered the question of maintainability urged on behalf of the writ petitioners and rejected their objection by Ext.P6 order passed on 20.11.2019. It was this order that was challenged in the writ petitions. The writ petitioners had also filed IA No.1 of 2022 before this Court seeking to produce certain documents, which were not part of the documents produced before the Tribunal. 3.The learned single Judge considered the said documents as well and set aside Ext.P6 order of the Tribunal and directed the Labour Court to decide the preliminary issue again and directed to revisit the issue by deciding the preliminary issue by affording four effective turns in a span of one and half months each for both the parties and to decide the case thereafter within a month, in accordance with law. The said common judgment in the writ petitions is challenged in the appeals before us. 4. The learned counsel for the appellant, Sri.Thomas Abraham contends that the ID was filed as early as on 2017 and the written statement was filed after more than two years and four months. The maintainability was requested to be considered only thereafter even without an interlocutory application and based on the pleadings, the issue was heard and the Tribunal passed Ext.P6 order rejecting the contentions of maintainability. According to the learned counsel, there WA Nos.1443, 1458 & 1462 of 2022 8 was no error, legal or factual to interfere with Ext.P6 order. He further argues that the documents which are produced before this Court belatedly have also be taken into consideration while setting aside Ext.P6 order and the same has caused prejudice to the appellantUnion. It is his further argument that going by the decisions of the Supreme Court, the ISRO would come within the definition of Industry under the Act. 5. The learned counsel for the respondents argues that maintainability was raised as a preliminary issue as the Labour Court has no jurisdiction to entertain the dispute and sought to sustain the order of the learned single Judge. 6. After hearing the learned counsel on either side and taking note of the directions in the judgment of the learned single Judge that relegated the parties to the Labour Court, to consider the issue of maintainability within the time frame fixed and also to consider the matter on merits thereafter, we do not think that any interference is called for as an expeditious disposal within the time limit fixed would serve the ends of justice and also in the larger interest of the Union. The apprehension expressed by the learned counsel for the appellant that the observations of the learned single Judge would prejudice the proceedings before the Labour Court is misplaced. At any rate, to quell WA Nos.1443, 1458 & 1462 of 2022 9 the apprehension of the learned counsel for the appellant, while directing the Labour Court to strictly adhere to the time limit fixed by the learned single Judge, we also make it clear that admissibility of the documents produced before this Court also will be considered by the Labour Court while considering the preliminary issue of maintainability afresh. The Labour Court will have to decide the issue before it independently and on its merits untrammelled by any of the observations made in the impugned judgment while interfering with Ext.P6 order. 7. We have held in our judgment in WA No.888 of 2022 and connected cases (MANU/KE/2549/2022) that “It is trite that under normal circumstances writ petitions against preliminary orders of the Labour court would not ordinarily be entertained by this Court in proceedings under Article 226/ 227 of the Constitution of India. The law in this regard is well settled through the decision of the Supreme Court in **The Cooper Engineering Ltd. v. P.P.Mundhe** (AIR 1975 SC 1900), where the court clearly stated that in exercise of the jurisdiction under Article 226/227 of the Constitution of India the High Court should not stop proceedings before the Industrial Tribunal so that a preliminary issue may be decided by them. The said observation of the Supreme Court has been followed by this Court in **Amrita** WA Nos.1443, 1458 & 1462 of 2022 10 **Institute of Medical Science v. Labour Court** [2017(4) KLT 1040], where again the rationale of the decision aforementioned was noticed by observing that neither the jurisdiction of a High Court under Article 226 of the Constitution of India nor the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court under Article 136 of the Constitution of India could be allowed to be exploited by those who can well afford to wait, to the detriment of those who can ill afford to wait, by dragging the latter from court to court for adjudication of peripheral issues, avoiding decisions on issues more vital to them.“ In view of these principles and for the reasons indicated above, we hold that no interference is warranted in the facts of the case. Accordingly, the writ appeals are disposed subject to the above. Sd/- ## **A.K. JAYASANKARAN NAMBIAR, JUDGE** Sd/- **MOHAMMED NIAS C.P. JUDGE** dlk/18.10.22 WA Nos.1443, 1458 & 1462 of 2022 11 ## **APPENDIX OF WA 1443/2022** PETITIONER'S ANNEXURES ANNEXURE A1 THE TRUE COPY OF THE RELEVANT PORTION OF THE WEBPAGES OF M/S ANTRIX CORPORATION AND M/S NEW SPACE INDIA LTD. WA Nos.1443, 1458 & 1462 of 2022 12 ## **APPENDIX OF WA 1462/2022** PETITIONER'S ANNEXURES ANNEXURE A1 THE TRUE COPY OF THE RELEVANT PORTION OF THE WEBPAGES OF M/S ANTRIX CORPORATION AND M/S NEW SPACE INDIA LTD. WA Nos.1443, 1458 & 1462 of 2022 13 ## **APPENDIX OF WA 1458/2022** PETITIONER'S ANNEXURES ANNEXURE A1 THE TRUE COPY OF THE RELEVANT PORTION OF THE WEBPAGES OF M/S ANTRIX CORPORATION AND M/S NEW SPACE INDIA LTD.