Only Centre BMRCLs appropriate government for industrial disputes: Karnataka HC

BENGALURU: Turning down the contention of the state government and the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) that the state is the appropriate government for any industrial dispute, the Karnataka High Court ruled that the central government is the appropriate government. Therefore, the state government has no competence to notify the services of BMRCL as Public Utility Services and Essential Service under the relevant laws, the high court added. Stating that the BMRCL is a railway company within the meaning of Railway Company as defined in Section 2(a)(i) read with Section 2(o) of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, the court declared that under Section 2(n)(vi) of the Act, the state government has no competence to notify the services of BMRCL as Public Utility Services and under Section 2(1) of the Karnataka Essential Services Maintenance Act, 2013, the state government has no competence to notify the services of BMRCL as an essential service. Justice Anant Ramanath Hegde passed the order while dismissing the petitions filed by the BMRCL, claiming that the state government is the appropriate government, and allowing the petitions filed by the BMRCL Employees Union, contending that the central government is the appropriate government. In view of these rulings, the court quashed the notification dated November 18, 2019, issued by the Labour Department of the state government, declaring the services of the BMRCL as public utility services, as the same is without jurisdiction in view of the fact that the central government is the appropriate government for BMRCL. Also, the court quashed the notification dated July 7, 2017, issued under the Karnataka Essential Services Maintenance Act, 2013, in respect of the BMRCL, and also the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited Employees (Conduct, Discipline and Appeal) Rules, 2014. Also, the court restrained the labour department of the state government from granting any exemption under Section 14 of the Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946, to BMRCL from the application of the provisions of the Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Act, 1946. Also turning down the contention of the state that it is the appropriate government, the court directed the Central Government Industrial Tribunal to proceed to adjudicate the issue before it.