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Judgment
N.K. Mehrotra, J.—Heard Sri R.B. Pandey for the petitioners and Sri A.S. Zaidi briefholder of proforma opposite party No.1. No body appears from the side of the opposite party No.2.
Petitioners No.1 and 2 are the Manager and Head Master of Nanhey Singh Kisan Laghu Madhyamik Vidyalaya, Belhari, Gonda. Opposite party No.2 Ram Bahal Verma was the Assistant Teacher in this Institution. The opposite party No.2 moved a petition before the Prescribed Authority under the Payment of Wages Act 1936 for getting the payment of his salary from July 1980 to 31.5.88. The Prescribed Authority allowed his petition and passed an order after treating the opposite party No.2 as Workman and allowed the application under the Payment of Wages Act by passing order under Sections 14(1) and 15(3) of the Payment of Wages Act. This was an exparte order. The application for recall was dismissed vide Annexure No.6 to the writ petition. The petitioner further moved for rehearing of the case and this application for rehearing was also dismissed vide Annexure No.7.
Now by means of this writ petition, the petitioners have challenged these three orders as contained in Annexures No.5, 6 and 7 to the writ petition.
The main contention of the petitioners is that admittedly opposite party No.2 has been Assistant Grade Teacher and is not covered under the definition of Workman. Therefore, the opposite party No.2 could not move any petition under the Payment of Wages Act and he is not entitled for any relief, before the authority under the Payment of Wages Act. In support of the contention learned counsel for the petitioners has relied on the decisions of the Haryana Unrecognised Schools Association v. State of Haryana; 1996 Supreme Court Cases (L & S) 923, Miss A. Sundarambal v. Government of Goa, Daman and Diu and Others, 1988 UPLBEC 747 (Supreme Court); Ashok Kumar Sharma and another v. District Inspector of Schools, Gautambudh Nagar and another, [(2005) 1 UPLBEC 166] (Full Bench, Allahabad). In all these decision, it has been settled that the Teachers are not Workmen and the petition moved by the Teacher under the Payment of Wages Act before the Labour Court or the Authority under the Payment of Wages Act is not maintainable.
In view of the above, aforesaid settled legal position the writ petition is allowed and award given by the Labour Officer, Gonda, under the Payment of Wages Act, 1936, as contained in Annexure No.5 and subsequent orders as contained in Annexure Nos.6 are quashed.
(Petition allowed)