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TMI Blog1959 (5) TMI 52X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... stified; and if not, whether he was entitled to reinstatement with or without compensation or any other relief in lieu thereof. Das was dismissed by the company on March 12, 1955. The charge against him was that on the night of February 6/7, 1955, he along with one Samson, also an employee of the company, committed theft of two wheels complete with tyres and tubes from the company's lorry, which amounted to gross misconduct under the Standing Orders. The case was reported to the police and Das as well as Samson were arrested. Das remained in jail up to February 25, 1955, when he was released on bail. He reported for duty on February 28; but the manager suspended him for ten days from March 1. Thereafter, he was served with a charge-shee ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... d to him till the date of final payment. This award was given on October 23, 1956, and was in due course published and came into force. Thereupon, there was an application to this Court for special leave to appeal, which was granted; and that is how the matter has come up before us. 2. Two points have been urged before us on behalf of the company, namely - (1) the Tribunal was not a competent tribunal under s. 7 of the Industrial Disputes Act, No. XIV of 1947 (hereinafter called the Act) as it then stood; and (2) the award of the Tribunal is not sustainable in law as it shows as if the Tribunal was sitting in appeal on the enquiry held by the company, and this it was not entitled to do. 3. Re. (1). 4. Reference in this case w ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ave two reasons for holding that the dismissal was unjustified; namely - (1) that proper procedure had not been followed, and (2) that legal evidence was wanting. So far as the second reason is concerned, there is force in the criticism on behalf of the company that the Tribunal had proceeded as if it was sitting in appeal on the enquiry held by the company. But considering that the Tribunal was also of opinion that proper procedure had not been followed we have still to see whether that finding of the Tribunal justifies the conclusion at which it arrived. We may in this connection set out in detail what happened at the enquiry on March 12, as appears from the testimony of the manager and the documents produced by him before the Tribunal. T ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e recorded were produced on behalf of the company before the Tribunal; but the witnesses were not produced so that they might be cross-examined even at that stage on behalf of Das. The question is whether in these circumstances it can be said that an enquiry as required by principles of natural justice was made in this case. 7. We may in this connection refer to Union of India v. T. R. Varma (1958)IILLJ259SC . That was a case relating to the dismissal of a public servant and the question was whether the enquiry held under Art. 311 of the Constitution of India was in accordance with the principles of natural justice. This Court, speaking through Venkatarama Ayyar J. observed as follows in that connection at p. 507 :- Stating it broadl ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... t to be furnished to any of the parties. That was, however, a case in which the police officer making the report was not required to be cross-examined; on the other hand, the party concerned was informed about the material sought to be used against him and was given an opportunity to explain it. The narration of facts as to what happened on March 12, which we have given above, shows that even this was not done in this case, for there is no evidence that copies of the statements of witnesses who had given evidence against Das were supplied to him or even that the statements made by the witnesses to the manager were read out in extenso to Das before he was asked to question them. In these circumstances one of the basic principles of natur ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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