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Daler Khan & Ors. v. State of Himachal Pradesh & Ors.

Civil Appeal · 2017 INSC 1079Decided 6 Nov 2017
Civil Appeal Nos. 18012-18013 of 2017
Justice Kurian Joseph · Justice R. Banumathi

Background

The appellants (workers) had been denied a reference of their industrial dispute to the Labour Court by the High Court of Himachal Pradesh on the ground that they had approached the authorities too late (delay). Meanwhile, in several similar cases with comparable delay, the Supreme Court had already directed the State to make a reference anyway, and pursuant to one such earlier judgment (26.09.2016, in Civil Appeal No. 9714/2016 and connected matters), the Labour Court had gone on to actually consider those references.

Decision Breakdown

Treating the appellants' situation as materially identical to the earlier batch of cases where delay had already been excused and reference directed, the Court allowed the appeal and directed the State to refer the appellants' cases to the Labour Court as well, expressly instructing that the objection on the ground of delay be ignored. The State was directed to do this within two months of being given a copy of the judgment.

Lesson Learnt

A delay in seeking an industrial dispute reference is not always fatal, where the Supreme Court has already excused similar delay for similarly situated workers, those precedents can be used to get one's own matter referred despite the same objection.

Official source (sci.gov.in)View Judgment (PDF)

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