MAHANADI COALFIELDS LTD. versus BRAJRAJNAGAR COAL MINES WORKERS’ UNION

Citation: [2024] 3 S.C.R. 627 · Decided: 12-03-2024 · Supreme Court of India · Bench: PAMIDIGHANTAM SRI NARASIMHA

cites 1 · see the full citation network in Lexace

Judgment (excerpt)

* Author
[2024] 3 S.C.R. 627 : 2024 INSC 199
Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd. 
v. 
Brajrajnagar Coal Mines Workers’ Union 
(Civil Appeal No. 4092-4093 of 2024)
12 March 2024
[Pamidighantam Sri Narasimha* and Sandeep Mehta, JJ.]
Issue for Consideration
Whether the Tribunal was justified in entertaining the reference of 
an industrial dispute when a binding settlement under Section 18 
(1) read with Section 19(2) and Section 36 of the Industrial Dispute 
Act, 1947 was arrived at between the parties.
Headnotes
Industrial Dispute Act, 1947-Section 10 - Reference of disputes; 
Section 18 (1) read with Section 19(2) - Settlement binding 
on all parties. 
32 workers, working continuously for 10 years, sought regularisation 
on the basis of Clause 11.5.1 and Clause 11.5.2 of the National 
Wage Agreement IV - Settlement arrived between the labour 
union and management under Rule 58 of the Industrial Disputes 
(Central) Rules, 1957 - 19 workers regularised - 13 workers’ job 
described as ‘purely casual’ – Central Government invoked power of 
reference to Tribunal - Tribunal found that the (1) 13 workers were 
on same footing as regularised workers, granted regularisation (2) 
job was perennial in nature (3) management could not establish 
distinction - Concurrent findings by High Court in Writ Petition and 
Review Petition. 
Held: 13 workers entitled to regularisation on parity basis – 
Workers entitled to back wages on grounds of wrongful denial of 
employment and regularisation – Back wages to be calculated 
from the date Tribunal’s decision in reference – Under Article 136 
only substantial questions of law can be entertained [Paras 16, 
18, 20, 22, 23, 24]. 
Case Law Cited
J.K. Synthetics Ltd. v. K.P. Agarwal [2007] 2 SCR 60 : 
(2007) 2 SCC 433 – referred to.
628
[2024] 3 S.C.R.
Digital Supreme Court Reports
List of Acts
Industrial Dispute Act, 1947; Industrial Disputes (Central) Rules, 
1957.
List of Keywords
Settlement; Back Wages; Artificial Distinction; Nature of Job; Same 
footing; Reference; Conciliation; Regularisation; Wrongful Denial 
of employment.
Case Arising From
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION : Civil Appeal Nos. 4092-4093 
of 2024
From the Judgment and Order dated 11.01.2017 in WPC No.2002 of 
2002 and dated 11.11.2021 in RVWPET No.77 of 2017 of the High 
Court of Orissa at Cuttack
Appearances for Parties
Aman Lekhi, Sr. Adv., Soumyajit Pani, Aishwary Bajpai, Siddharth 
Jain, Advs. for the Appellant.
Ashok Kumar Panda, Sr. Adv., Tejaswi Kumar Pradhan, Mohan 
Prasad Gupta, Manoranjan Paikaray, Shashwat Panda, Advs. for 
the Respondent.
Judgment / Order of the Supreme Court
Judgment
Pamidighantam Sri Narasimha, J.
1.	
Delay condoned. Leave granted.
2.	
The Appellant, Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd., a subsidiary of Coal India 
Ltd. floated a tender for the transportation of crushed coal and 
selected a successful contractor for performance of the agreement 
for the period 1984 to 1994. The contractor employed workmen for 
execution of this contract.
3.	
The respondent-union espoused the cause of the workmen who were 
engaged by the contractor and sought permanent status for them. 
It relied on clauses 11.5.1 and 11.5.2 of the National Coal Wage 
Agreement-IV dated 27.07.1989. Under these clauses, it was agreed 
that the employer shall not engage contract labour with respect to 
[2024] 3 S.C.R. 
629
Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd. v. Brajrajnagar Coal Mines Workers’ Union 
jobs which are permanent and perennial in nature. They also provide 
that such jobs shall be executed through regular employees.
4.	
Following the representation of the respondent-union, the Assistant 
Labour Commissioner sent a notice to the appellant for conciliation. 
The conciliation process eventually culminated in a settlement dated 
05.04.1997 under Rule 58 of the Industrial Disputes (Central) Rules, 
1957. The relevant portion of the settlement is as follows: 
“The Union has submitted a list of 32 persons said to have 
been engaged by the contractors and demanded for their 
regularisation. Alter verification, it was observed, that the 
following persons are engaged in Bunker for operating 
Chutes.
SI 
No.
Name of the Person
Father’s 
Name
01.
Sri Sadanand Bhoi
Keshab
02.
Sri Purusottam Dau
Govardhan
03.
Sri Anta Barik
Gadadhar
04.
Sri Aditya Nikhandia
Cheru
05.
Sri Bhabagrahi Pradhan
D. Pradhan
06.
Sri Sudarshan Khandit
Masru
07.
Sri Ashok Kumar Rout
Sitaram
08.
Sri Krishna Dau
Goverdhan
09,
Sri Abhimanyu Kisan
Chhala
10.
Sri Lakhan Bhoi
Keshab
11.
Sri Jay 

Excerpt shown. Read the full judgment & AI analysis in Lexace.