Dissenting workmen entitled to payment under Companies Act. Criteria for wages, leave, gratuity outlined. Official Liquidator to adjudicate claims.

The court held that dissenting workmen were not bound by consent terms and were entitled to payment under Sections 529 and 529A of the Companies Act, 1956. The date for calculating wages was determined up to the winding-up order, with specific criteria for entitlement. Dissenting workmen were entitled to leave wages but not notice pay under the Industrial Disputes Act. Bonus was not prioritized, gratuity was payable, and interest on dues was outlined. The Official Liquidator was directed to adjudicate claims accordingly, with dissenting workmen given the option to accept dues per consent terms.

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Issues Involved:
1. Whether the dissenting workmen are bound by the consent terms or entitled to payment under Sections 529 and 529A of the Companies Act, 1956.
2. The date up to which dissenting workmen are entitled to wages.
3. Entitlement to notice pay, leave wages, bonus, gratuity, and interest on these dues.

Detailed Analysis:

Issue 1: Binding Nature of Consent Terms
The dissenting workmen argued they were not bound by the consent terms agreed upon by the registered union and the secured creditors and sought payment according to Sections 529 and 529A of the Companies Act, 1956. The court found that these workmen were not represented by the union that signed the consent terms and had consistently objected to them. The court concluded that dissenting workmen must be paid based on their legal entitlements under Sections 529 and 529A, as the Company Court had kept their entitlements open during the sanctioning of the consent terms.

Issue 2: Date Up to Which Wages Are Payable
The court had to determine the date up to which wages should be calculated. The registered union had taken 31 December 2002 as the cut-off date, while dissenting workmen argued for 24 October 2008, the date of the winding-up order. The court held that under Section 445(3) of the Companies Act, the contract of employment ends with the winding-up order. However, only those workmen who became members of the workers' cooperative and worked until 31 December 1998 were entitled to wages up to the winding-up order date. Others who did not join the cooperative were not entitled to wages post-20 September 1991.

Issue 3: Entitlement to Notice Pay, Leave Wages, Bonus, Gratuity, and Interest
- Notice Pay: The court ruled that the dissenting workmen were not entitled to notice pay under Section 25-N of the Industrial Disputes Act as amended by the Maharashtra Act, due to repugnancy with the central law.
- Leave Wages: Under Section 79 of the Factories Act, leave wages or encashments are due only for earned or accumulated leave up to a maximum of thirty days. The court held that dissenting workmen were entitled to leave wages in accordance with this provision.
- Bonus: The court confirmed that bonus is not included in the category of wages under Sections 529 and 529A and thus cannot be accorded priority. Dissenting workmen could claim bonus only if surplus funds were available.
- Gratuity: The court agreed that gratuity was payable to dissenting workmen as provided by law, and this was also covered under the consent terms and the Official Liquidator's adjudication.
- Interest: Interest on wages was payable under Rules 156 and 157 of the Companies (Court) Rules at a rate not exceeding four percent per annum up to the winding-up order date. Post-winding-up interest on gratuity and other dues would be governed by Rule 179 and payable only if there was a surplus after settling all claims.

Conclusion and Orders:
The court directed the Official Liquidator to adjudicate the claims of the dissenting workmen based on the court's findings and documentary evidence. The Official Liquidator was to complete this within three months and offer the dissenting workmen an option to accept their dues as per the consent terms. The applications were disposed of with no order as to costs.

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