TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
1973 (2) TMI 144
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....he Tribunal, the parties submitted their respective statements, which are fully set out in the impugned award and we are not repeating them here. It was admitted before the Tribunal by the parties that the activities carried on by the Mangalore Port Trust, constitute an industry. The management, however contended that the provisions of the Payment of Bonus Act, 1965 (shortly called the "Bonus Act"), are not applicable to their industry and hence the claim for the workmen was untenable and should be rejected. On the rival contentions, the following two preliminary issues were framed by the Tribunal : "1. Whether the provisions of the Payment of Bonus Act, 1965, are inapplicable as alleged by the II party management ? 2. If the Payment of Bonus Act is applicable, whether there is no industrial dispute as contemplated by S. 22 of the Payment of Bonus Act ? And, if so, is the reference illegal ?" On the second issue, the Tribunal held that the provisions of S. 22 of the Bonus Act are not attached to the dispute and, on the first issue it held that the Mangalore Port Trust is a local authority within the meaning of S. 32(iv) of the Bonus Act and, therefore, the work....
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..... It is not defined under the Bonus Act. Section 3(31) of the General Clauses Act, 1897, defines it as follows : "3. (31) 'Local authority' shall mean a municipal committee, district board, body of the port commissioners or other authority legally entitled to, or entrusted by the Government with, the control or management of a municipal or local fund." The said definition consists of two independent parts. A municipal committee, district board and body of port commissioners fall under the first part; and any other authority which is legally entitled to or entrusted with, by the Government, the control or management of a municipal or local fund falls under the second part. 5. The contention of Mr. Sunderaswami, learned counsel for respondent 1, was that the Board of Trustees of the Port of Mangalore is similar to a body of Port Commissioners and, therefore, it is a local authority, within the meaning of the first of the definition. He further said that, in any event, the Board of Trustees is an authority falling within the description of "any other authority" stated by the second part of the said definition. 6. It appears to us that there is no differences ....
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.... the sub-section can be applied to them; and moreover the word 'or' and not 'and' other authority is used. The Port Trust, therefore, is a local authority." 8. In R. Sarangapani v. The Port Trust of Madras, AIR1961Mad234, Rajamannar, C.J., said at page 239 that the Port Trust would fall within the extended definition of the State under Art. 12, because it would be a local authority as defined under S. 3(31) of the General Clauses Act, 1897. 9. The Labour Tribunal to reach its conclusion that the Managalore Port Trust is a local authority, has followed the statement of law laid down in the above two decisions. In our view, the Tribunal did so quite rightly. The ratio of the said two decisions is clearly applicable to the case on hand. The Trustees of the Port Trust, Madras, are in no way different from the Trustees of the Port of Mangalore. We, therefore, hold that the Board of Trustees of the Mangalore Port is a "local authority" within the meaning of the first part of the definition of the said expression. 10. The second branch of the submission of Mr. Sunderaswamy, whether the Port Trust is entrusted by the Government with the control or management of Mun....
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....t over the activities of the Board. 13. On a consideration of the above provisions, it is clear that the Board of Trustees is a body which comes under the control of the Government by law, in regard to its proceedings generally and also on specific matters including its expenditure, and appointments to certain specified posts. It seem to us that the revenue administered by the Board of Trustees of the Mangalore Port falls within the expression "local fund" as defined by Rule 2(17) of the Mysore Financial Code and for that reason also the said Board comes within the definition of "local authority" under S. 3(31) of the General Clauses Act. 14. The decision of the Supreme Court in Valjibhai Muljibhai Soneji v. State of Bombay, [1964]3SCR686, relied on by counsel for the petitioner is clearly distinguishable. In that case, the question that arose for consideration was to as to whether the Bombay State Road Transport Corporation was a local authority. After referring to the definition of the expression "local authority" in S. 3(31) of the General Clauses Act, Mudholkar, J., said at p. 1894 : "It will be clear from the definition that unless it is shown that the State Tra....
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....s of the funds is supplied by registered employers upon whom a suitable levy has been imposed under the command of the statute. I, therefore, see no difficulty whatever in treating such a fund as a local fund which the Calcutta Dock Labour Board is legally entitled to, and even entrusted by the State under the command of the statute, to control and manage. So soon as that is said, the Dock Labour Board at once elevates itself to the height of a local authority within the meaning of S. 3, clause (31), of the General Clauses Act .........." 17. The conclusion which we have so far reached is sufficient to dispose of this case but we will also pass on to consider the further question, i.e., whether S. 20 of the Bonus Act is applicable to the dispute raised by the workmen. 18. The provisions of the Bonus Act are inapplicable to the employees employed by the establishment in public sector save as otherwise provided by the said Act (see Section 31.) Section 20 is one of the exceptions. Section 20 provides : "20. (1) If in any accounting year an establishment in public sector sells any goods produced or manufactured by it or renders any services, in competition with an estab....