SECURITY PRINTING AND MINTING CORPORATION OF INDIA LTD. & ORS. ETCversusVIJAY D. KASBE AND ORS. ETC

246                      [2023]REPORTS
               SUPREME COURT    4 S.C.R. 246                  [2023] 4 S.C.R.


A       SECURITY PRINTING AND MINTING CORPORATION OF
                     INDIA LTD. & ORS. ETC.
                                         v.
                      VIJAY D. KASBE AND ORS. ETC.
B                     (Civil Appeal Nos. 2911-2920 of 2023)
                                 APRIL 18, 2023
        [V. RAMASUBRAMANIAN AND PANKAJ MITHAL, JJ.]
             Service Law – Government servants – Claim of Over Time
      Allowance u/s.59(1), Factories Act – Denial of – Held: Appointment
C
      either to a civil post or in the civil services of the Union or the State
      is not an employment governed strictly by a contract of service or
      solely by labour welfare legislations, but by statute or statutory
      rules issued u/Article 309 or its proviso – Unlike those employed in
      factories and industrial establishments, persons in public service
D     who are holders of civil posts or in the civil services of the Union or
      the State are required to place themselves at the disposal of the
      Government all the time – In the present case, the claim of the
      respondentsarose at the time when they were Central Government
      servants – Thus, the respondents who were holders of civil posts or
      in the civil services of the State at the relevant time, could not have
E
      claimed the benefits of the provisions of Chapter VI of the 1948
      Act, dehors the service rules – Orders of the Tribunal and the High
      Court unsustainable – Impugned order of the High Court set aside
      – Factories Act 1948 – Chapter VI – s.59(1) – Constitution of India
      – Article 309, 313 – Fundamental Rules and the Supplementary
F     Rules 1922 – r. 11.
             Factories Act 1948 – Chapter VI – s.64 – Maharashtra
      Factories Rules, 1963 – r.100 – Held: Admittedly, the State
      Government is conferred with the power u/s.64(1) to make exempting
      Rules – In exercise of the power so conferred, the State of
G     Maharashtra framed r.100 wherein the post of Supervisor is included
      in r.100, as a post exempted from the application of the provisions
      of Chapter VI of the Act – Also, the chart of duties indicated in the
      ACRs does not show that the respondents are required to perform
      manual labour or clerical work as a regular part of their duties –
      High Court erred in holding that the performance of certain
H
                                        246
  SECURITY PRINTING AND MINTING CORPORATION OF                           247
            INDIA LTD. v. VIJAY D. KASBE

functions, such as setting right malfunctioning of feeder, side-lay,     A
double-sheet detector, photocell, etc., to ensure uninterrupted
running of the machinery, are manual functions.
       Constitution of India – Articles 226/227, 136 – Findings of
fact recorded by Tribunal, interference with – Held: Normally, the
High Court exercising supervisory jurisdiction u/Art.226/227 and         B
Supreme Court exercising jurisdiction u/Art.136, will not be inclined
to interfere with the findings of fact recorded by a Tribunal –
However, in the present case, the Central Administrative Tribunal
reached diametrically opposite findings of fact, in two different sets
of cases filed by employees holding similar supervisory posts, both
of which cannot co-exist.                                                C

      Service Law – Persons in the civil services of the Union/State,
persons holding civil posts under the Union/State – Service matter
dispute including claim for allowances raised before Administrative
Tribunal – Duty of the Tribunal – Discussed – Constitution of India
–Article 309, proviso to Art.309 – Administrative Tribunals Act, 1985    D
– ss.3(q), 28.
       Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 – s.2(s) – Factories Act 1948 –
s.2(l)– Held: Definition of “workman” in s.2(s) of the 1947 Act
specifically excludes persons employed in a supervisory capacity –
But, such an exclusion is not there in the definition of the very same   E
word “worker” in s.2(l) of the 1948 Act.
       Tribunals/Courts – Adjudicating dispute relating to conditions
of service of an employee – Three different categories of employment
enumerated – Held: Court/Tribunal should keep in mind the different
parameters applicable to the three different categories of               F
employment.
      Allowing the appeals, the Court
      HELD: 1.1 The claim of the respondents for payment of
Double Over Time Allowance arose entirely during the period
                                                                         G
from 1988 to 2005. Since the ‘Corporation’ was incorporated only
on 13.1.2006 and all the nine production units coming under the
control of the Currency and Coinage Division of the Department
of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Government of India
were transferred to the Corporation only with effect from
10.2.2006, the claim of the respondents obviously arose at the           H
248            SUPREME COURT REPORTS                        [2023] 4 S.C.R.


A     time when they were Central Government servants. In other
      words, their claim should be considered to have arisen only in
      relation to “service matters” of persons appointed to “a service
      in connection with the affairs of the Union” or in relation to “holders
      of civil post.” The definition of the expression “service matters”,
      is provided in Section 3(q) of the Administrative Tribunals Act,
B
      1985. It is seen from sub-clause (i) of clause (q) of Section 3
      extracted above that any issue relating to remuneration including
      allowances, is a service matter. The respondents herein, at least
      during the period from 1988 till the year 2006, were either
      holders of civil posts under the Union or appointed to the civil
C     services of the Union. This is why the respondents approached
      the Central Administrative Tribunal, for the adjudication of their
      service matter. [Paras 16-19][257-C-E; 258-C-D]
             1.2 Primarily, the terms and conditions of service of persons
      in the civil services of the Union or the State and persons holding
D     civil posts under the Union or the State, are regulated either by
      the Acts of the appropriate Legislature passed in terms of Article
      309 or by the Rules framed in exercise of the power conferred by
      the proviso to Article 309 of the Constitution. Therefore,
      whenever a dispute relating to a service matter, which includes a
      claim for allowances, is raised before the Administrative Tribunal,
E     the primary duty of the Tribunal is to see what is provided by the
      relevant Act issued under the main part of Article 309 or the
      Rules issued under the Proviso to Article 309. Appointment either
      to a civil post or in the civil services of the Union or the State, is
      one of a status. It is not an employment governed strictly by a
F     contract of service or solely by labour welfare legislations, but by
      statute or statutory rules issued under Article 309 or its proviso.
      In fact, the history of civil service in India is more than a century
      old and there were Rules in force, such as the Fundamental Rules
      and the Supplementary Rules (FRSR) issued way back in the year
      1922, with effect from 1.1.1922. Article 313 of the Constitution
G     declares that until other provision is made under the Constitution,
      all the laws in force immediately before the commencement of
      the Constitution and applicable to any public service or post, shall
      continue in force. This is why the Fundamental Rules of the year
      1922 continue to apply even now, to the holders of civil posts and
H
  SECURITY PRINTING AND MINTING CORPORATION OF                          249
            INDIA LTD. v. VIJAY D. KASBE

those in the civil services of the Union or the State. [Paras 20-       A
22][258-E-H; 259-A-B]
      1.3 Unlike those employed in factories and industrial
establishments, persons in public service who are holders of civil
posts or in the civil services of the Union or the State are required
to place themselves at the disposal of the Government all the           B
time. In the light of the above Rule, there was actually no scope
for the respondents to seek payment of Double Over Time
Allowance. No benefit can be claimed by anyone dehors the
statutory rules. Unfortunately, the Central Administrative Tribunal
completely lost sight of those Rules, and the distinction between
employment in a factory and employment in Government service.           C
[Paras 24, 25][259-E, G-H; 260-A]
       1.4 Persons who are not holders of civil posts nor in the
civil services of the State but who are governed only by the 1948
Act, may be made to work for six days in a week with certain
limitations as to weekly hours under Section 51, weekly holidays        D
under Section 52, daily hours under Section 54, etc. Workers
covered by Factories Act do not enjoy the benefit of automatic
wage revision through periodic Pay Commissions like those in
Government service. Persons holding civil posts or in the civil
services of the State enjoy certain privileges and hence, the claim     E
made by the respondents ought to have been tested by the
Tribunal and the High Court, in the proper perspective to see
whether it is an attempt to get the best of both the worlds.
Admittedly, the State Government is conferred with the power
under Section 64(1) to make exempting Rules. In exercise of
the power so conferred, the State of Maharashtra has framed Rule        F
100. Apparently, the post of Supervisor is included in Rule 100,
as a post exempted from the application of the provisions of
Chapter VI. The chart of duties indicated in the ACRs does not
show that the respondents are required to perform manual labour
or clerical work as a regular part of their duties. The High Court      G
fell into an error in holding that the performance of certain
functions, such as setting right malfunctioning of feeder, side-lay,
double-sheet detector, photocell, etc., to ensure uninterrupted
running of the machinery, are manual functions. In any case, the

                                                                        H
250            SUPREME COURT REPORTS                         [2023] 4 S.C.R.


A     respondents, who are holders of civil posts or in the civil services
      of the State till the year 2006, could not have claimed the benefits
      of the provisions of Chapter VI of the 1948 Act, dehors the service
      rules. The Tribunal as well as the High Court did not consider
      the distinction between persons in Government service and those
      in private service and the effect of the statutory rules upon the
B     conditions of service of the respondents, including their liability
      to work for extra hours. The Tribunal reached diametrically
      opposite findings of fact in respect of persons holding similar
      supervisory posts. The impugned order of the High Court is set
      aside. However, the appellants are not to effect any recovery
C     from those to whom payments have already been made. [Paras
      27-29, 40 and 41][260-C-E; 261-E, G-H; 262-A-B; 263-H; 264-
      A-C]
            Burmah Shell Oil Storage and Distribution Company
            of India Ltd. v. The Burma Shell Management Staff
            Association & Ors.1970 (3) SCC 378 : [1971] 2 SCR
D
            758 – held inapplicable.
                              Case Law Reference
      [1971] 2 SCR 758                held inapplicable           Para 12
            CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION: Civil Appeal Nos. 2911-
E     2920 of 2023.
            From the Judgment and Order dated 28.06.2018 of the High Court
      of Judicature at Bombay in WP Nos. 7055, 7784, 7157, 7257, 7271,
      7480, 7758, 8273 of 2010, 2603 of 2007 and 8287 of 2010.
            Dhruv Mehta, Sr. Adv., Abhishek Kumar, Harman Singh Sandhu,
F     Rahul Shyam Bhandari, Shyam R. Agarwal, Advs. for the Appellants.
           Ravindra Keshavrao Adsure, K. Parmeswar, Yash Prashant
      Sonavane, Rohan Darade, Lav Mishra, Sandeep Sudhakar Deshmukh,
      Nishant Sharma, Tushar D. Bhelkar, Advs. for the Respondents.
            The Judgment of the Court was delivered by
G
            V. RAMSUBRAMANIAN, J.
               Leave granted.
            2. Challenging a common order passed by the High Court of
      Judicature at Bombay, in a batch of writ petitions affirming an order of
H     the Central Administrative Tribunal, holding that even those employees
      SECURITY PRINTING AND MINTING CORPORATION OF                                251
    INDIA LTD. v. VIJAY D. KASBE [V. RAMSUBRAMANIAN, J.]

working as Supervisors are entitled to Double Over Time Allowance,                A
the Management of the Security Printing & Minting Corporation of India1
and others have come up with these appeals.
      3. We have heard Shri Dhruv Mehta, learned senior counsel
appearing for the appellants and Shri R.K. Adsure, Shri K. Parameswar
and Shri S.S. Deshmukh, learned counsel appearing for the respondents.            B
      4. The case on hand has a checkered history with fortunes
fluctuating from one side to the other. To the extent necessary, we shall
now trace the history as follows:-
         (i)     Till the year 2005, the Ministry of Finance, Government of
                 India had nine production units namely, four India               C
                 Government Mints, two Currency Note Presses, two
                 Security Printing Presses and one Security Paper Mill under
                 its control. In the year 2006, a wholly owned Company under
                 the name and style of ‘Security Printing & Minting
                 Corporation of India Ltd.’ was incorporated on 13.1.2006,        D
                 for the purpose of taking over the management, control,
                 maintenance and operations of those nine production units
                 which were functioning under the Currency and Coinage
                 Division of the Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry
                 of Finance, Government of India. The transfer actually took
                 place with effect from 10.2.2006.                                E

         (ii)    The transfer of management automatically led to the
                 transfer of the workforce and along with the assets and
                 liabilities of the nine production units, the Corporation also
                 inherited some litigation, including the one on hand.
                                                                                  F
         (iii)   Way back in the year 1988, an order dated 21.12.1988 was
                 issued by the Special Officer (Currency & Coinage),
                 Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance,
                 Government of India, directing that the shop-floor and the
                 ministerial staff, falling under the category of non-gazetted
                 supervisory staff of the Presses and Security Paper Mill         G
                 would be compensated for extended hours of work at certain
                 rates. The order indicated that the category of staff
                 mentioned therein would be entitled to a special allowance to

1
    For short, “Corporation”                                                      H
252                  SUPREME COURT REPORTS                          [2023] 4 S.C.R.


A                      be paid in lieu of overtime allowance, at the rate of Rs.600/-
                       per month for working of 9 hours and at the rates of
                       Rs.1,000/- per month and Rs.1,400/- per month for working
                       of 10 hours and 11 hours respectively.
               (iv)    By a subsequent order issued by the Government of India
B                      on 11.4.2000, it was clarified that the staff whose basic pay
                       exceeded the ceiling limit of Rs.2,200/- per month in the
                       pre-revised scales of pay, will not be entitled to any overtime
                       allowance.
               (v)     In the year 1988, a group of eight persons working as
C                      Supervisors, Works Engineer, Section Officer, etc., in the
                       Currency Note Press, Nashik, filed a writ petition on the
                       file of the High Court of Judicature at Bombay in Writ
                       Petition No.3150 of 1988, claiming overtime allowance. The
                       writ petition was transferred to Central Administrative
                       Tribunal in the year 1995. It was tagged along with a few
D
                       original applications directly filed before the Tribunal and
                       by a common order dated 25.7.1997, the Central
                       Administrative Tribunal dismissed all the applications, on
                       the ground that it had no jurisdiction to deal with a claim
                       relating to overtime allowance arising under the Factories
E                      Act, 19482.
               (vi)    Challenging the said order of the Tribunal dated 25.7.1997,
                       a few writ petitions came to be filed on the file of the High
                       Court of Judicature at Bombay. During the pendency of
                       the writ petitions, one more group of supervisory employees
F                      (A.K. Biswas and 20 others) filed an application in O.A.
                       No.26 of 2000 on the file of the Central Administrative
                       Tribunal claiming the same reliefs. This application was also
                       dismissed by the Tribunal by an order dated 19.1.2001
                       following the order passed on 25.7.1997 in the other cases.
G              (vii)   Therefore, A.K. Biswas and 20 others filed a writ petition
                       on the file of the High Court. By an order dated 27.1.2005,
                       the High Court remanded the matter (A.K. Biswas and
                       others) back to the Tribunal for a fresh consideration. After

      2
H         For short, “1948 Act”
  SECURITY PRINTING AND MINTING CORPORATION OF                              253
INDIA LTD. v. VIJAY D. KASBE [V. RAMSUBRAMANIAN, J.]

            remand, the Tribunal allowed the application filed by A.K.      A
            Biswas and others by an order dated 4.4.2005. But this
            order was set aside by the High Court in a writ petition
            filed by the Union of India, on the ground that an amendment
            to Section 70 of the Bombay Shops and Establishments Act
            was not considered by the Tribunal. This order of the High
                                                                            B
            Court remanding the matter back to the Tribunal for a second
            time was dated 31.1.2006.
    (viii) Following the second order of remand passed by the High
           Court on 31.1.2006 in the case filed by A.K. Biswas and
           others, the writ petitions already pending and arising out of
                                                                            C
           earliest writ petition of the year 1988 were also allowed
           and the matter remanded back to the Tribunal for a fresh
           consideration.
    (ix)    Unfortunately, after the remand, the Tribunal first took up
            for consideration O.A. No.26 of 2000 filed by A.K. Biswas
            and others and dismissed the same by an order dated             D
            15.9.2006.
    (x)     After nearly four years of disposal of the application filed
            by A.K. Biswas and others, the Tribunal took up all other
            applications, pending from 1995 onwards (and one of which
            related to the writ petition of the year 1988 and which got     E
            transferred to the Tribunal in the year 1995). By a common
            order dated 9.6.2010, the Central Administrative Tribunal
            held that the applicants therein were entitled to Double Over
            Time Allowance in terms of Section 59(1) of the 1948 Act.
            After holding so, the Tribunal confined the relief, only to a   F
            period of two years prior to the filing of the respective
            original applications, insofar as arrears were concerned.
    (xi)    Aggrieved by the dismissal of their application in O.A. No.26
            of 2000 by the Tribunal by an order dated 15.9.2006, A.K.
            Biswas and others filed a writ petition in Writ Petition        G
            No.2603 of 2007 on the file of the High Court.
    (xii)   In the meantime, the Corporation had come into existence
            and, hence, the Union of India as well as the Corporation,
            along with the India Security Press and Currency Note Press
            filed a batch of writ petitions challenging the second order
                                                                            H
254             SUPREME COURT REPORTS                            [2023] 4 S.C.R.


A                   of the Central Administrative Tribunal dated 9.6.2010.
            (xiii) In other words, the rejection by the Tribunal of the claim of
                   one set of employees (A.K.Biswas and others) was the
                   subject matter of one writ petition and the grant of relief by
                   the Tribunal in favour of the other group of employees was
B                  the subject matter of a separate batch of writ petitions.
            (xiv) By a common order dated 28.6.2018, the High Court of
                  Judicature at Bombay dismissed all the writ petitions filed
                  by the Union of India and the Corporation. Coming to the
                  writ petition filed by A.K. Biswas and others, the High Court
C                 found that the employees were similarly placed and that
                  they were entitled to the same benefits as given to the other
                  employees. However, the High Court found that some of
                  the employees had already compromised the matter with
                  the Management and that therefore the relief should be
                  confined only to those employees who had not compromised.
D                 Accordingly, the High Court allowed the writ petition filed
                  by A.K. Biswas and others, granting relief only to those
                  employees who had not compromised the matter with the
                  management.
            (xv) It is against the said common order passed by the High
E                Court on 28.6.2018 that the Corporation has come up with
                 the above appeals.
             5. From the narration of facts provided above, it will be clear that
      the only question which falls for our consideration is: as to whether persons
      employed as Supervisors are entitled or not, to Double Over Time
F     Allowance in terms of Section 59(1) of the 1948 Act?
             6. For coming to the conclusion that the employees are entitled to
      Double Over Time Allowance, the Tribunal started with two presumptions,
      namely (i) that the India Security Press, Currency Note Press and India
      Government Mint would fall within the definition of the expression
G     “factory” as defined in Section 2(m) of the 1948 Act; and (ii) that the
      employees would fall within the definition of the expression “worker”
      as defined in Section 2(l) of the 1948 Act. As a sequitur, the Tribunal
      held that these Supervisors, will, in the normal course, be entitled to
      extra wages for overtime in terms of Section 59(1) of the 1948 Act.
H           7. But it was argued on behalf of the Union of India that under
      SECURITY PRINTING AND MINTING CORPORATION OF                              255
    INDIA LTD. v. VIJAY D. KASBE [V. RAMSUBRAMANIAN, J.]

Section 64(1) of the 1948 Act, the State Government was entitled to             A
make Rules exempting the application of the provisions of Chapter VI
of the Act to certain categories of workers. In exercise of the power
conferred by Section 64(1), the State of Maharashtra had issued a set of
Rules known as Maharashtra Factories Rules, 19633, Rule 100 of which
exempted Supervisors from the application of the provisions of Chapter
                                                                                B
VI, provided they were not required to perform manual labour or clerical
work as a regular part of their duties. In the light of such a stand taken
by the Union of India, the Tribunal, in the batch of applications decided
on 9.6.2010, framed the following question as arising for consideration:-
         “Whether in the facts and in the circumstances of the cases the
         applicants in these OAs are entitled to double OTA under Section       C
         59(1) of the Factories Act, even after considering the provisions
         of Section 64(1) of the Factories Act, 1948 read with the provisions
         of Rule 100 of Maharashtra Factories Rule, 1963?”
      8. After framing the issue as aforesaid, the Tribunal recorded a
finding that the applicants before the Tribunal were doing clerical work        D
as a part of their regular duties and that therefore they were excluded
from the application of Rule 100 of the 1963 Rules, in view of the proviso
contained therein. In view of the said finding, the Tribunal held that the
applicants before the Tribunal were entitled to Double Over Time
Allowance.                                                                      E
       9. In contrast, the very same Tribunal found in its order dated
15.9.2006 in the original application filed by A.K. Biswas and others that
the applicants before the Tribunal were not performing any manual labour
or clerical work as a regular part of their duties and that therefore by
virtue of Rule 100 of the 1963 Rules, they stood excluded from the              F
benefit conferred by Section 59(1) of the 1948 Act.
       10. Thus, the Central Administrative Tribunal reached diametrically
opposite findings of fact, in two different sets of cases filed by employees
who were identically placed and discharging identical duties and
responsibilities. The reason why we record this fact is that in normal          G
circumstances, the High Court exercising supervisory jurisdiction under
Article 226/227 and this Court exercising jurisdiction under Article 136,
will not be inclined to interfere with the findings of fact recorded by a
Tribunal. But in this case, there are two diametrically opposite set of
3
    For short, “1963 Rules”                                                     H
256                SUPREME COURT REPORTS                       [2023] 4 S.C.R.


A     findings, both of which cannot co-exist.
            11. Keeping the above aspect in mind, let us now proceed to
      consider the rival contentions.
            12. Shri Dhruv Mehta, learned senior counsel appearing for the
B     appellants contended, (i) that a perusal of the list of duties assigned to
      the respondents, as reflected by the ACRs clearly show that the
      respondents were performing supervisory duties, exercising control over
      50 to 100 workers; (ii) that as per the law laid down by this Court in
      Burmah Shell Oil Storage and Distribution Company of India Ltd.
      vs. The Burma Shell Management Staff Association & Ors.4, a person
C     whose predominant nature of work is supervisory, will not be qualified
      as a workman merely because he also carries on clerical/mechanical
      work incidental to his supervisory work; (iii) that the Tribunal as well as
      the High Court failed to appreciate the scope of Rule 100 of the 1963
      Rules in the proper perspective; and (iv) that the Supervisors enjoying
D     higher scales of pay than workers, cannot claim the benefit of overtime
      allowance as extended to workers.
             13. In response, it is contended by Shri K. Parameswar, learned
      counsel appearing for the respondents, (i) that the decision in Burmah
      Shell Oil Storage and Distribution Company of India Ltd. (supra)
E     cannot have any application to the case on hand, since the definition of
      the expression “workman” under the Industrial Disputes Act, 19475 is
      quite different from the definition of the same expression under the 1948
      Act; (ii) that therefore the dominant nature test propounded in Burmah
      Shell Oil Storage and Distribution Company of India Ltd. is not
      applicable here; (iii) that the Tribunal and the High Court have found on
F     evidence that the respondents are performing manual labour or clerical
      work as a regular part of their duties and, hence, Rule 100 of the 1963
      Rules has no application; and (iv) that the findings of fact recorded by a
      quasi-judicial tribunal cannot be interfered with lightly.
             14. Shri S.S. Deshmukh, learned counsel appearing for some of
G     the respondents contended, (i) that the proviso to Section 64(1) of the
      1948 Act carves out an exception, in the case of persons drawing rate of
      wages not exceeding the limit specified in Section 1(6) of the Payment

      4
          1970 (3) SCC 378
      5
H         For short, “1947 Act”
      SECURITY PRINTING AND MINTING CORPORATION OF                               257
    INDIA LTD. v. VIJAY D. KASBE [V. RAMSUBRAMANIAN, J.]

of Wages Act, 19366, insofar as the claim for extra wages for overtime           A
work is concerned; (ii) that therefore Rule 100 of the 1963 Rules has no
application to the case of the respondents in view of the said proviso to
Section 64(1); and (iii) that the Central Administrative Tribunal itself
had passed orders in several applications, in favour of employees
identically placed and working as Supervisors, the details of which are
                                                                                 B
provided in paragraph 5 of the counter affidavit filed by A.K. Biswas in
the above appeals and that therefore the orders of the Tribunal and the
High Court do not call for any interference.
         15. We have carefully considered the rival contentions.
       16. At the outset, it should be noted that the claim of the respondents   C
for payment of Double Over Time Allowance arose entirely during the
period from 1988 to 2005. Since the ‘Corporation’ was incorporated
only on 13.1.2006 and all the nine production units coming under the
control of the Currency and Coinage Division of the Department of
Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Government of India were
transferred to the Corporation only with effect from 10.2.2006, the claim        D
of the respondents obviously arose at the time when they were Central
Government servants. In other words, their claim should be considered
to have arisen only in relation to “service matters” of persons appointed
to “a service in connection with the affairs of the Union” or in relation
to “holders of civil post.”                                                      E
       17. The definition of the expression “service matters”, is provided
in Section 3(q) of the Administrative Tribunals Act, 19857 and it reads as
follows:-
         “3. Definitions.—In this Act, unless the context otherwise
         requires,—                                                              F
                          xxx          xxx        xxx
         (q) “service matters”, in relation to a person, means all matters
         relating to the conditions of his service in connection with the
         affairs of the Union or of any State
                                                                                 G
         or of any local or other authority within the territory of India or
         under the control of the Government of India, or, as the case may
         be, of any corporation or society owned or controlled by the
6
    For short, “1936 Act”
7
    For short, “1985 Act”                                                        H
258             SUPREME COURT REPORTS                            [2023] 4 S.C.R.


A            Government, as respects—
             (i) remuneration (including allowances), pension and other
             retirement benefits;
             (ii) tenure including confirmation, seniority, promotion, reversion,
             premature retirement and superannuation;
B
             (iii) leave of any kind;
             (iv) disciplinary matters; or
             (v) any other matter whatsoever;”
             18. It is seen from sub-clause (i) of clause (q) of Section 3 extracted
C     above that any issue relating to remuneration including allowances, is a
      service matter. The respondents herein, at least during the period from
      1988 till the year 2006, were either holders of civil posts under the Union
      or appointed to the civil services of the Union.
             19. This is why the respondents approached the Central
D     Administrative Tribunal, for the adjudication of their service matter. The
      respondents did not go either before the Labour Court constituted under
      the 1947 Act or before the Authorities empowered under other labour
      welfare legislations, despite Section 28 of the 1985 Act not excluding the
      jurisdiction of the Industrial Tribunal or the Labour Court. Keeping this
E     in mind, let us now address a more fundamental question.
             20. Primarily, the terms and conditions of service of persons in
      the civil services of the Union or the State and persons holding civil
      posts under the Union or the State, are regulated either by the Acts of
      the appropriate Legislature passed in terms of Article 309 or by the
      Rules framed in exercise of the power conferred by the proviso to Article
F
      309 of the Constitution. Therefore, whenever a dispute relating to a
      service matter, which includes a claim for allowances, is raised before
      the Administrative Tribunal, the primary duty of the Tribunal is to see
      what is provided by the relevant Act issued under the main part of Article
      309 or the Rules issued under the Proviso to Article 309.
G            21. It must be kept in mind that appointment either to a civil post
      or in the civil services of the Union or the State, is one of a status. It is
      not an employment governed strictly by a contract of service or solely
      by labour welfare legislations, but by statute or statutory rules issued
      under Article 309 or its proviso.
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  SECURITY PRINTING AND MINTING CORPORATION OF                                 259
INDIA LTD. v. VIJAY D. KASBE [V. RAMSUBRAMANIAN, J.]

       22. In fact, the history of civil service in India is more than a       A
century old and there were Rules in force, such as the Fundamental
Rules and the Supplementary Rules (FRSR) issued way back in the
year 1922, with effect from 1.1.1922. Article 313 of the Constitution
declares that until other provision is made under the Constitution, all the
laws in force immediately before the commencement of the Constitution
                                                                               B
and applicable to any public service or post, shall continue in force. This
is why the Fundamental Rules of the year 1922 continue to apply even
now, to the holders of civil posts and those in the civil services of the
Union or the State.
       23. It must also be borne in mind that there are three different
categories of employment, if not more, in the country. They are,               C
(i) employment which is statutorily protected under labour welfare
legislations, so as to prevent exploitation and unfair labour practices;
(ii) employment which falls outside the purview of the labour welfare
legislations and hence, governed solely by the terms of the contract; and
(iii) employment of persons to civil posts or in the civil services of the     D
Union or the State. Any Court or Tribunal adjudicating a dispute relating
to conditions of service of an employee, should keep in mind the different
parameters applicable to these three different categories of employment.
       24. Unlike those employed in factories and industrial establishments,
persons in public service who are holders of civil posts or in the civil       E
services of the Union or the State are required to place themselves at
the disposal of the Government all the time. Rule 11 of the Fundamental
Rules reads as under:-
      “Unless in any case it be otherwise distinctly provided, the whole
      time of a Government servant is at the disposal of the Government
                                                                               F
      which pays him, and he may be employed in any manner required
      by proper authority, without claim for additional remuneration,
      whether the services required of him are such as would ordinarily
      be remunerated from general revenues, from a local fund or from
      the funds of a Body incorporated or not, which is wholly or
      substantially owned or controlled by the Government.”                    G
       25. In the light of the above Rule, there was actually no scope for
the respondents to seek payment of Double Over Time Allowance. It is
needless to say that no benefit can be claimed by anyone dehors the
statutory rules. Unfortunately, the Central Administrative Tribunal
completely lost sight of those Rules, and the distinction between              H
260            SUPREME COURT REPORTS                          [2023] 4 S.C.R.


A     employment in a factory and employment in Government service, despite
      the Union of India raising this as a specific issue in paragraph 12 of the
      counter filed in O.A. No.428 of 2005 before the Central Administrative
      Tribunal.
            26. The claim of the respondents before the Tribunal was not
B     based on any statutory rule but based entirely upon Section 59(1) of the
      1948 Act.
              27. Persons who are not holders of civil posts nor in the civil
      services of the State but who are governed only by the 1948 Act, may
      be made to work for six days in a week with certain limitations as to
C     weekly hours under Section 51, weekly holidays under Section 52, daily
      hours under Section 54, etc. Workers covered by Factories Act do not
      enjoy the benefit of automatic wage revision through periodic Pay
      Commissions like those in Government service. Persons holding civil
      posts or in the civil services of the State enjoy certain privileges and
      hence, the claim made by the respondents ought to have been tested by
D     the Tribunal and the High Court, in the proper perspective to see whether
      it is an attempt to get the best of both the worlds.
            28. Admittedly, the State Government is conferred with the power
      under Section 64(1) to make exempting Rules. In exercise of the power
      so conferred, the State of Maharashtra has framed Rule 100, which
E     reads as follows:-
            “Rule - 100:
            PERSONS DEFINED TO HOLD POSITION OF
            SUPERVISION OR EMPLOYED IN A CONFIDENTIAL
F           POSITION.
            (1) In a factory the following persons shall be deemed to hold
            position of supervision or management within the meaning of sub-
            section (1) of section 64, provided they are not required to perform
            manual labour or clerical work as a regular part of their duties
            namely:
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                (i) The Manager, Deputy Manager, Assistant Manager,
                Production Manager, Works Manager and the General
                Manager;
                (ii) Departmental Head, Assistant Departmental Head,
H               Departmental in-charge or Assistant Departmental in-charge;
  SECURITY PRINTING AND MINTING CORPORATION OF                                 261
INDIA LTD. v. VIJAY D. KASBE [V. RAMSUBRAMANIAN, J.]

          (iii) Chief Engineer, Deputy Chief Engineer and Assistant            A
          Engineer;
          (iv) Chief Chemist, Laboratory incharge;
          (v) Personnel Manager, Personnel Officer;
          (vi) Labour Officer, Assistant Labour Officer;
                                                                               B
          (vii) Welfare Officer, Additional Welfare Officer or Assistant
          Welfare Officer;
          (viii) Safety Officer;
          (ix) Security Officer;
          (x) Foreman, Chargeman, Overseer and Supervisor;                     C
          (xi) Jobber in Textile Factories;
          (xii) Head Store Keeper and Assistant Store Keeper;
          (xiii) Boiler Sarang or such Boiler Attendants who are in-charge
          of a battery of boilers and are only required to do supervisory      D
          work;
          (xiv) Any other person who in the opinion of the Chief Inspector,
          holds a position of supervision or Management and is so
          declared in writing by him.”
       29. Apparently, the post of Supervisor is included in Rule 100, as      E
a post exempted from the application of the provisions of Chapter VI.
       30. But the claim of the respondents is that the proviso embedded
in Rule 100(1) makes the exemption inapplicable to those who are
required to perform manual labour or clerical work as a regular part of
their duties.                                                                  F
       31. On a question of fact as to whether the respondents are required
to perform manual labour or clerical work as a regular part of their
duties, the Tribunal has reached diametrically opposite conclusions, one
in the case of A.K. Biswas and others and the other in the case of
remaining set of employees.                                                    G
       32. The chart of duties indicated in the ACRs does not show that
the respondents are required to perform manual labour or clerical work
as a regular part of their duties.
       33. The High Court fell into an error in holding that the performance
of certain functions, such as setting right malfunctioning of feeder, side-    H
262             SUPREME COURT REPORTS                            [2023] 4 S.C.R.


A     lay, double-sheet detector, photocell, etc., to ensure uninterrupted running
      of the machinery, are manual functions. But we do not think so.
              34. In any case, the respondents, who are holders of civil posts or
      in the civil services of the State till the year 2006, could not have claimed
      the benefits of the provisions of Chapter VI of the 1948 Act, dehors the
B     service rules.
             35. Though the decision in Burmah Shell Oil Storage and
      Distribution Company of India Ltd. is heavily relied upon by Shri Dhruv
      Mehta, learned senior counsel appearing for the appellants, we do not
      think that the same has any application to the case on hand. This is for
C     the reason that the definition of “workman” in Section 2(s) of the 1947
      Act specifically excludes persons employed in a supervisory capacity.
      But such an exclusion is not there in the definition of the very same
      word “worker” in Section 2(l) of the 1948 Act.
            36. The distinction can be well understood if these definitions are
      presented in a tabular form side by side:-
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  SECURITY PRINTING AND MINTING CORPORATION OF                                263
INDIA LTD. v. VIJAY D. KASBE [V. RAMSUBRAMANIAN, J.]

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       37. Sub-clause (iv) of clause (s) of Section 2 of the Industrial       C
Disputes Act, 1947, is conspicuously absent in the corresponding provision
in the 1948 Act. Therefore, we would not place our conclusion on the
basis of the decision in Burmah Shell Oil Storage and Distribution
Company of India Ltd.
       38. Similarly, the argument of Shri S.S. Deshmukh, learned counsel     D
appearing for the respondents based upon the proviso to Section 64(1)
of the 1948 Act read with Section 1(6) of the 1936 Act, cannot distract
our attention. In any case, Section 1(6) of the 1936 Act as it stood before
the Amendment Act 41 of 2005 which came into effect on 9.11.2005
reads as follows:-
                                                                              E
      “1. Short title, extent, commencement and application.—
             xxx                        xxx                    xxx
      (6) Nothing in this Act shall apply to wages payable in respect of
      a wage-period which over such wage-period, average one
      thousand six hundred rupees a month or more.”                           F
      39. But in the case on hand, the distinction made by the
Government of India in their Office Order dated 21.12.1988 related to
persons drawing a basic pay of more than Rs.2,200/-. Therefore, the
provisions of the Payment of Wages Act, were not applicable to the
respondents herein and as a sequitur, the Proviso to Section 64(1) of the     G
1948 Act cannot be pressed into service.
      40. Thus, we find (i) that the Tribunal as well as the High Court
did not consider the distinction between persons in Government service
and those in private service and the effect of the statutory rules upon the
conditions of service of the respondents, including their liability to work   H
264              SUPREME COURT REPORTS                                 [2023] 4 S.C.R.


A     for extra hours; (ii) that the Tribunal reached diametrically opposite
      findings of fact in respect of persons holding similar supervisory posts;
      and (iii) that therefore, the orders of the Tribunal and the High Court are
      unsustainable.
            41. In view of the above, all the appeals are allowed and the
B     impugned order of the High Court is set aside. However, we find that
      some of the employees have retired, some have passed away and in
      respect of some who have passed away, the appeals have been abated.
      Therefore, even while allowing the appeals and setting aside the impugned
      order of the High Court, we direct the appellants not to effect any
      recovery from those to whom payments have already been made. No
C     order as to costs.
             Pending application(s), if any, stands disposed of accordingly.

      Divya Pandey                                                       Appeals allowed.
      (Assisted by : Sirgapoor Sahil Reddy and Shevali Monga, LCRAs)
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