Law: West Pakistan Industrial and Commercial Employment (Standing Orders) Ordinance (VI of 1968)

Section: 37, 38 , 16

West Pakistan Industrial Disputes Ordinance (IV of 1968) Ss. 37, 38 & 16-Domestic enquiry-Interference by Court and Appellate Tribunal-Court can examine matter itself only in case of existence of victimisation-Review of evidence before Domestic enquiry not within competence of Court if no grounds of victimisation established-Perversity of findings of domestic enquiry, Matter of objective determination, held, can be examined by Appellate Tribunal-Case-law discussed. It is now well settled law that what the Labour Court has to see if the enquiry held by the Management was fair and proper. It can also see whether the order of dismissal was an act of victimisation or an unfair labour practice or was mala fide. if any of these grounds are .established, the Labour Court would be justified in ignoring the domestic enquiry and -to examine the matter itself and whether there was any justification for the order of dismissal. If no such ground is established the Labour Court cannot review-the evidence and to come to its own conclusion on the various facts and circumstances that the findings of the domestic enquiry were erroneous. It can further interfere with the findings of the domestic enquiry if those findings are based on no evidence or perverse. It will not be within the competence of the Labour Court to enquire whether a particular witness has been rightly believed or not, or whether a particular finding was supported by sufficient evidence. The process of reasoning in arriving at a conclusion on a question of fact may on investigation or examination appear unappealing. On these or similar grounds an authority having power to hear an appeal on facts alone can interfere. These grounds do not make the decision perverse. A decision can be condemned as perverse if it is impelled by arbit rariness or prejudice or if it is such that to a judicial mind- it appears that no reasonable person could reach that conclusion. Perversity in a recorded finding is a matter of objective determina tion, which can be examined by Labour Appellate Tribunal on appeal. Date of hearing: 30th April 1970. ORDER This is an appeal against an Order of the learned First West Pakistan Labour…