Synopsis

The petitioner bank challenged two orders of the Labour Court under Section 33C(2) of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, which allowed recovery of medical bills, subsistence allowance, leave encashment, and provident fund amount to the widow of a deceased employee. The employee had been suspended for alleged misappropriation but died before any inquiry was completed. The bank refused payment on the ground that the employee had caused loss and that outstanding loans should be adjusted. The High Court held that the Labour Court had jurisdiction under Section 33C(2) because the rights to these benefits had crystallised under the bipartite settlement and bank regulations. However, the court modified the awards: reduced interest from 12% to 6%, and held that the bank could deduct from provident fund only the amount of its own contribution (with interest), not the entire fund. The petitions were partly allowed.

Court: High Court of Gujarat at Ahmedabad

Coram: Hon’ble Dr. Justice A. P. Thaker (Single Judge)

Date of Judgment: 16th July 2021

Citation: Special Civil Application No.4696 of 2010 & 4697 of 2010 (unreported)

Core Law: Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 – Section 33C(2) (recovery of money due from employer); Provident Fund Act, 1925 – Section 6 (deductions); Service law – Bipartite settlement.

1. Heading of the judgment

High court of gujarat at ahmedabad

R/special civil application no. 4696 of 2010 with r/special civil application no. 4697 of 2010

Chief manager & anr (petitioners) vs. Purnima a andharia (respondent)

Coram: hon’ble dr. justice a. p. thaker

Date: 16th july, 2021

2. Legal framework

Major laws and provisions involved:

• Industrial disputes act, 1947 – section 33c(2) (recovery of money due from employer; computation of benefits)

• Provident fund act, 1925 – section 6 (power to make deductions from provident fund)

• State bank of saurashtra (employees’) provident fund regulations – regulations 17(2), 17(3), 21

• Bipartite settlement dated 01.08.1979 – clauses 15 (leave encashment), 18 (medical aid)

Subject matter of the judgment:

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