Law:

Section:

Industrial dispute-Re-instatement-Benefit of back wages Domestic enquiry being not proper and impartial-Court should not, while re-instating dismissed worker on basis of such enquiry, straightaway, grant benefit of back wages but allow Management to institute fresh enquiry-Benefit of back wages-To be left depen dant upon result of fresh enquiry-Industrial Disputes Ordinance: When the order of dismissal is set aside on the ground that the domestic enquiry was bad and a party is ordered to be re-instated, it does not deprive the Department from holding a fresh enquiry. If a fresh enquiry is held and the party concerned is found to be guilty of misconduct, he will not be entitled to any back benefits. On the other hand, if he is held to be not guilty of misconduct, he will by entitled to back benefits from the date that he had been dismissed from service up to the date that he is re-instated. In other words, the Court should order the worker to be re-instated and award him back benefits, subject to the result of the enquiry to be held by the Department within a reasonable time, if they so desired. The Court may have to allow the Department some time to hold an enquiry. If the enquiry was not held within that time, the worker should have been taken to have been exonerated and would have been entitled to full back benefits. Date of hearing: 17th September 1970.   DECISION This is an appeal against an award dated 30th April 1970, whereby the learned Labour Court on an application under section 31 of the Industrial Disputes Ordinance, 1959 (hereinafter called the repealed Ordinance), came to the conclusion that the enquiry was unfair and not impartial and on that ground set aside the order dismissing the respondent from service and ' ordered his re-instatement with full back benefits. The facts giving rise to the appeal briefly put are these. 2. The respondent, Abdul Ghafoor, who was a Conductor in the service of Government Transport, Sukkur, was found on 22nd December 1965, on his bus being checked twice on the same day, once at about 9-10 a.m. and later on at 12-30 p.m., that he had failed to issue tickets to 13 persons, though he had realized fare from…