Voluntary arbitrator under industrial dispute reference is not a tribunal under Article 136, barring special leave appeal.

An arbitrator appointed under section 10A of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, on voluntary reference by the parties, is not a tribunal within Article 136(1). Although the award has statutory recognition and the proceedings are regulated by the Act and rules, the arbitrator's authority comes from the parties' agreement, not from a State conferment of inherent judicial power. The decisive test is whether the body is constituted by the State and exercises that power. Because that test is not met, the arbitrator does not fall within the tribunals contemplated by Article 136(1), and special leave appeals are incompetent.

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Issues: Whether an arbitrator appointed under section 10A of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, on voluntary reference by the parties, is a Tribunal within Article 136(1) of the Constitution so as to make an appeal by special leave competent.

Analysis: Article 136(1) extends only to judgments, decrees, determinations, sentences, or orders passed by a court or tribunal, and the decisive test for a tribunal is whether the body has been constituted by the State and invested with the State's inherent judicial power. The arbitration under section 10A has some statutory incidents: the award is given statutory recognition, certain provisions of the Act apply to it, and the proceedings are regulated by rules. Even so, the authority to adjudicate is derived from the parties' agreement, not from a statutory conferment of the State's judicial power. The Government's role under section 10A is limited to publication and consequential steps, while the reference itself is made by the parties to the person of their choice. The arbitrator therefore has features akin to a statutory arbitrator, but does not acquire the character of an Industrial Tribunal or other tribunal contemplated by Article 136(1).

Conclusion: An arbitrator under section 10A of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, is not a Tribunal under Article 136(1); the special leave appeals were incompetent.

Ratio Decidendi: A body is a tribunal under Article 136 only if it is constituted by the State and exercises the State's inherent judicial power; a voluntary arbitrator under section 10A, whose authority flows from the parties' agreement, does not satisfy that test.

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