Nov - High Court of Judicature at Allahabad

1044 INDIAN LAW REPORTS ALLAHABAD SERIES [2009
respondent no. 2 has filed an application
for setting aside the exparte award and
that was allowed vide order dated 3rd
May, 1997 and the application to recall
the order dated 3rd May, 1997 was
rejected by the Tribunal vide order dated
22nd August, 1997.
12. Rule 16 (2) provides that an
application to set aside the exparte award
can be filed within 10 days of such award.
From the pleadings of the parties, it
transpires that the factum of sending of
notices through registered post has not
been denied and it has also not been stated
that on which date the respondent no. 2
acquired knowledge of the exparte award.
Further the application for setting aside
exparte award was filed after 30 days of
its publication. In these circumstances, it
cannot be said that the application filed by
the respondent no. 2 to set aside the
exparte award was within time or there
was a reasonable reason to not apply for
the same.
13. The Apex Court, in the case of
Grindlays Bank (supra) has held that the
Tribunal/court retained its jurisdiction to
set aside an exparte award provided the
application has been filed within 30 days
of its publication. In the case of Sangham
Tape Co. (supra), the Apex court has held
that once the award becomes enforceable,
the Industrial Tribunal or labour court
becomes functus officio.
14. Here in the present case, as has
been mentioned above, the award was
given on 10th February,1995 and it was
published on 20th April, 1995 and it was
also published on the notice board on
22nd May, 1995, whereas the respondent
no. 2 has filed the application for setting
aside the exparte award on 25th October,
1996 apparently this was beyond 30 days
from the date of its publication i.e. 20th
April 1995 or 22nd May, 1995. Section 6-
A of the U.P. Industrial Dispute Act
provides that the award becomes
enforceable after 30 days of its
publication. The language used in Section
6-A of the U.P. Industrial Dispute Act is
identical to the language used in Section
17-A of the Industrial Dispute Act, 1947.
In the cases of Grindlays Bank (supra)
and Sangham Tape Co. (supra), the Apex
Court has held that once the award
becomes enforceable, the Industrial
Tribunal or labour court become functus
officio. Although in the case of Satnam
Verma, (the case cited by respondent's
counsel) the Apex Court has held that the
labour court has jurisdiction to entertain
the application for setting aside the
exparte award but the facts of this case are
totally different as in the case of Satnam
Verma the application was filed prior to
the publication of the award and was well
within time, therefore, the case cited by
the respondent's counsel is distinguishable
on facts.
15. Under these facts and
circumstances, since the application for
setting aside the exparte award was filed
after the expiry of 30 days of its
publication, therefore it could not be
entertained as the Tribunal had become
functus officio and lost its jurisdiction to
entertain any application.
16. This Court has also taken the
same view in the cases of State of U.P Vs.
the Presiding Officer Labour Court (II)
U.P. Meerut and another 2005 (2) U.P.
L.B.E.C. 1751 and 2 008 (118) F.L.R.
922 District Panchayat (Zila Parishad)
Kanpur Dehat Vs. Presiding Officer,