Law: Newspaper Employees (Conditions of Service) Act, 1973

Section: LVIII,2(d)

Newspaper Employees (Conditions of Service) Act (LVIII of 1973)-------S.2(d)---Petition for recovery of gratuity etc. filed by former Group Director (Project) of newspaper establishment---'Newspaper employee', definition of--Scope---Monetary benefits (gratuity etc.), entitlement to Group Director (Projects) as a newspaper employee---Scope---Implementation Tribunal for Newspaper Employees---Jurisdiction---Plea of the petitioner (who resigned as Group Director (Project) of respondents/ management) was that he had worked with the respondents/ establishment continuously for more than 05 years, thus he was entitled for gratuity for the said period---Validity---It is crystal clear from definition of the 'newspaper employee', as mentioned in S.2(d) of Newspaper Employees (Conditions of Service) Act, 1973, that nomenclature of the petitioner (Group Director Projects)can not be termed as "newspaper employee" as the said category (Group Director ) has nothing to do with printing or publication of newspaper--Nature of job of Group Director (Projects) is all together different from the nature of job of the employees defined in the S. 2(d) of the Newspaper Employees (Conditions of Service) Act, 1973---Thus, by no stretch of imagination, the petitioner or his nomenclature can be brought within the preview of the newspaper employee---Therefore, the petitioner could not be termed as a 'newspaper employee and thus could not bring any lis before the Implementation Tribunal for Newspaper Employees---Legislature in its wisdom has defined both the categories i.e. a whole time journalist and a whole time non-journalist and thus, the categories related with the printing and publication of newspaper are exhaustively defined in the definition of 'newspaper employee 'and the employees working as Group Director (Projects) in any newspaper establishment are not covered under the said scheme of law--Petition , being devoid of merits and not maintainable, was dismissed in limine.ORDERSHAHID MEHMOOD KHOKHAR, CHAIRMAN.----Through instant order, I intend to dispose of above said case, filed by the petitioner through his authorized representative, which has been filed on 14-12-2023. The…