TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2010 (5) TMI 811
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.... his re-instatement in service, but without back wages. The Corporation has filed appeal being aggrieved of the order of re-instatement and reversal of the Award of the Labour Court dated 28.4.1995, while Civil Appeal No.3088 of 2007 has been preferred by the employee Shri Suresh Chand Sharma claiming full back wages. 2. Facts and circumstances giving rise to these appeals are that the said employee while working as a Conductor on bus No.UTL- 9194 on the route Haridwar-Rishikesh was found, on checking on 24.5.1987, carrying 13 passengers without ticket from whom he has already recovered the fare and on 10.5.1988 on bus No.UGA-9059 on which he was working as a Conductor, 10 passengers were found without ticket. However, the employee had alr....
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....ate Shri Om Prakash, conductor by the employer from 29.1.1989 is unjustified and/or illegal? If so, which benefit/compensation the applicant/workman is entitled and to what extent? 4. Both the parties appeared before the Labour Court, filed their replies and affidavits. Both parties filed documentary evidence and also led oral evidence and advanced submissions in support of their respective cases. The Labour Court considered all aspects and vide Award dated 28.4.1995 held that enquiry had been held strictly in accordance with law and both the charges in respect of both the incidents were found duly proved. Therefore, the employee was not entitled to any relief whatsoever. 5. Being aggrieved, the employee challenged the Award by filing C.....
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....aterial witnesses were not examined. Thus, no disciplinary proceeding could be initiated against the employee. There was no justification for imposing the punishment of dismissal by the authority and once the Award of the Labour Court is set aside, the employee was entitled to full back wages. Thus, the Corporation's appeal is liable to the dismissed and appeal filed by the employee deserves to be allowed. 8. We have considered the rival submissions made by learned counsel for the parties and perused the record. 9. The Labour Court has considered the matter at length and came to the conclusion that enquiry had been conducted strictly in accordance with law. There has been no violation of the principles of natural justice or any other stat....
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....employee/Conductor. Thus, it is not a case where the said employee could not issue the ticket and recover the fare from the travelling passengers, rather the finding has been recorded that after recovering the fare from the passengers, he did not issue tickets to them. Thus, there was an intention to mis-appropriate the fare recovered from the passengers who were found travelling without tickets at both the times. 11. The High Court dealt with the matter in a most cryptic manner. Relevant/main part of the judgment of the High Court reads as under: "5.....The Inspector in the cross-examination has also stated on oath that the cash was not checked. The learned counsel for the petitioner further submitted that when the bus was checked, ten ....
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....dence on the strength of co-conductor's testimony is a matter not for the court but for the administrative tribunal. In conclusion, we do not think courts below were right in over-turning the finding of the domestic tribunal." 14. In view of the above, the reasoning so given by the High Court cannot be sustained in the eye of law. More so, the High Court is under an obligation to give not only the reasons but cogent reasons while reversing the findings of fact recorded by a domestic tribunal. In case the judgment and order of the High Court is found not duly supported by reasons, the judgment itself stands vitiated. (Vide State of Maharashtra Vs. Vithal Rao Pritirao Chawan, AIR 1982 SC 1215; State of U.P. Vs. Battan & Ors. (2001) 10 SCC 6....
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....ed and their rational nexus and synthesis with the facts considered and the conclusion reached". (vide: Krishna Swami Vs. Union of India & Ors. AIR 1993 SC 1407) 19. Therefore, the law on the issue can be summarized to the effect that, while deciding the case, court is under an obligation to record reasons, however, brief, the same may be as it is a requirement of principles of natural justice. Non-observance of the said principle would vitiate the judicial order. Thus, in view of the above, the judgment and order of the High Court impugned herein is liable to be set aside. 20. We do not find any force in the submissions made by Dr. J.N. Dubey, learned Senior counsel for the employee that for embezzlement of such a petty amount, punishme....