S. K. G. SUGAR LTD. versus SRI ALI HASSAN, CHAIRMAN, INDUSTRIAL TRIBUNAL, BIHAR & OTHERS

Citation: [1959] SUPP. 1 S.C.R. 254 · Decided: 04-11-1958 · Supreme Court of India · Bench: SUDHI RANJAN DAS, NATWARLAL HARILAL BHAGWATI, BHUVNESHWAR PRASAD SINHA, K. SUBBA RAO, K.N. WANCHOO · Disposal: Appeal(s) allowed

Judgment (excerpt)

November 4. 
254 
SUPREME COURT REPORTS [1959) Supp. 
S. K. G. SUGAR LTD. 
v. 
STU ALI HASSAN, CHAIRMAN, INDUSTRIAL 
THIBUNAL, BIHAR & OTHERS 
(S. R. DAS, c. J., N. H. BHAGWATI, B. P. SINHA, 
K. SuBBA RAO and K. N. WANCHOO, JJ.) 
I11d11strial Dispute-Discharge by employer of workmen pending 
adjudication-'h'1nplo_)'Cr', 
.~1ca.ni11g nf--Industrial Disputes Act, 
I947 (.\'.IV of r947), ss. 33, 33A-lndian Companies Act, r9r3 (7of 
r9r3), s. r7r. 
Gaya Sugar Mills Ltd. went into liquidation and the sugar 
factory owned by it was lease<! out to the appellant by the liqui-
dator with tire permission of the Court on December 6, 1954, to 
be worked in terms of the lease which provided, inter alia, that 
the lessee would neither be liable for any of the liabilities of the 
cotnpany, or of the liquidator or the outgoing lessees nor bound to 
engage any of their employees or those working from before 
except those specifically mentioned in the lease. On December 2, 
r954, i.e. four days before the appellant came into possession of 
the sugar factory, the Bihar Government issued a notification 
referring a d.ispute bct\.vcen the n1anagements of certain specified 
sugar factories, including Ga ya Sugar Mills Ltd., and their work-
men represented by their Unions, for adjudication to the Indus-
trial Tribunal constituted by the respondent No. I. No notice 
was given to the appellant and proceedings against it were all 
exparte. 
Complaints, hO\Yever, \vere made before the Industrial 
Tribunal by two batches of workmen against the appellant under 
s. 33A of the Industrial Disputes Act alleging in one case that 
they had been discharged and in the other that the conditions 
of their service had been changed by the appellant without first 
obtaining the permission of the Tribunal under s. 33 of the Act. 
It was asserted on behalf of the appellant that there was no 
breach of the terms of the lease and no contravention of s. 33 of 
the Act. 
After unsuccessfully moving the High Court under 
Arts. 226 and 227 of the Constitution for a writ of certiorari 
quashing the said proceedings, the appellant came up to this 
Court by special leave and it was contended on its behalf that 
(I) no leave of the Court having been obtained under s. r7r of 
the Indian Companies Act by the State .Government before it 
made the reference under s. ro(r) of the Industrial Disputes Act, 
the reference was bad in law and that (2) the word 'employer' in 
ss. 33 and 33A of the Industrial Disputes Act meant only such 
employer as was actually concerned with the industrial dispute 
which was the subject matter of the reference and the appel-
lant having come into possession of the Mills after the refer-
ence, could not be an employer within the meaning of those 
sections. 
(1) S.C.R. 
SUPREME COURT REPORTS 
255 
Held, that the terms of the notification properly construed 
clearly showed that what was sought to be made a party to the 
-
reference was not the company itself but its management at the s. K. G. Sugar Ltd. 
date of the reference and, therefore, no question of leave of the 
v. 
court under s. r7r of the Indian Companies Act could arise. 
Sri Ali Hassan, 
Chairtnanl Indus~ 
The word 'employer' occurring in ss. 33 and 33A of the 
trial Trit.unal, 
Industrial Disputes Act meant the identical employer. concern-
Bihar & Others 
ed with the industrial dispute, which was the subject-matter of 
the adjudication, and could not include an employer who merely 
happened to discharge or punish or alter the conditions of service 
of workmen unless such employer could be shown to be a mere 
nominee or benamidar of the former or fell within the category of 
his heirs, successors or assigns within the meaning of s. r8(3)(c) 
of the Act. 
Since, in the instant case, the appellant satisfied none of 
these tests, it was not bound to seek the permission of the Tribu-
nal under s. 33 of the Act and the proceedings under s. 33A of 
the Act against it must be quashed. 
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION: 
Civil Appeal No. 
793 of 1957. 
Appeal by special leave from the judgment and 
order dated September 20, of the Patna High Court 
in M.J.C. No. 392 of 1955. 
0. J(. Daphtary, Solicitor-General of India, A. B. N. 
Sinha and B. P. Maheshwari, for the appellant. 
S. P. Varma, for respondents Nos. 1,2,6-8 and 10-23. 
1958. November 4. 
The Judgment of the Court 
was delivered by 
BHAGWATI, J.-This appeal with special leave is 
Bhagwati J. 
directed against the judgment of the High Cou

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