• Terms of Use
  • Article Submission
  • Premium Content
  • Editorial Board
Tuesday, November 28, 2023
  • Login
No Result
View All Result
Cart / ₹0

No products in the cart.

Subscribe
Mahabahu.com
  • Home
  • News & Opinions
  • Literature
  • Mahabahu Magazine
    • November 2023 – Vol-II
    • November 2023 – Vol-I
    • October 2023
    • September 2023
  • Lifestyle
  • Gallery
  • Mahabahu Books
    • Read Online
    • Free Downloads
  • E-Store
  • Home
  • News & Opinions
  • Literature
  • Mahabahu Magazine
    • November 2023 – Vol-II
    • November 2023 – Vol-I
    • October 2023
    • September 2023
  • Lifestyle
  • Gallery
  • Mahabahu Books
    • Read Online
    • Free Downloads
  • E-Store
No Result
View All Result
Mahabahu.com
Home News Special Report

THE LEGAL MILIEU OF STRIKES IN INDIA

-Devapreeti Sharma

by Admin
June 17, 2021
in Opinion, Special Report
Reading Time: 5 mins read
0
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on LinkedIn

-Devapreeti Sharma |

Strikes have become, due to its continued usage, an age-old weapon used by the workers of the world to make lives better for themselves. This weapon is believed to have invigorated the dignity of labour not just in the globe but also in India – and rightly so, considering that most of the labour welfare laws of India have largely been triggered into existence because of the protests and strikes of various classes of labourers. The United Nations, as well as the International Labour Organization have, at many instances, mooted for strikes in the status of an inherent right of all workers. It is now well-accepted that strikes are essential for a functional democracy and as such, the international community of states do acknowledge that all democratic states of the globe recognise, or ought to recognise, a ‘strike’ as a right. Many countries belonging to the “the Third World” and having a colonial past similar to that of India, have incorporated the Right to Strike in their constitutions – the constitutions of Angola, Brazil, Ethiopia and South Africa can be cited in this regard. Curiously for India, who boasts of having the world’s longest constitution and being the largest democracy, this Right is nowhere to be found in her constitutional grundnorm.  In India, the Right to Strike is regulated largely by the Industrial Disputes Act, 1947 (hereinafter referred to as “Act”). Unfortunately though, the Act provides for this Right only minimally, leaving room for a number of ambiguities and grey areas. Consequently, the Indian Judiciary has persistently struggled to fill in the legislative gaps and interpret the obscurities and uncertainties of the law. Question is – have they done enough?

RelatedPosts

কৃষ্ণ বন্দনাৰে মুখৰিত হাউলীৰ ৰাস

কৃষ্ণ বন্দনাৰে মুখৰিত হাউলীৰ ৰাস

November 28, 2023
Growing Old : Seniority and Serendipity

Growing Old : Seniority and Serendipity

November 28, 2023
snow covered mountains during daytime

Third Pole Warming- Humanity’s Himalayan Challenge

November 27, 2023

In a catena of cases, the judiciary was confronted with the question of whether the Right to Strike can be drawn to the Fundamental Freedom of Speech and Expression [Article 19(1)(a)], to Assemble Peaceably and Without Arms [Article 19(1)(b)] and to Form Associations and Unions [Article 19(1)(c)]. In 1961, when an appeal was made by All India Bank Employees Association against the National Industrial Tribunal, the Supreme Court ruled that the Right to Strike is a natural deduction of the Right to Form Associations and Unions but, noting that strikes can cause economic dislocation, the court also cautioned that this Right cannot be made an absolute right. But a year later, the court went back and ruled out all possibilities. In the Kameshwar Prasad case (1962), the apex court made a distinction between a ‘demonstration’ and ‘strike’ and ruled that while the former is a Fundamental Freedom, the latter is not. Four decades later, the same court went even further back – In T.K. Rangarajan v. Government of Tamil Nadu and Ors. (2003), Justice M.B. Shah went to the extent of saying that government servants do not have a “fundamental, statutory, equitable or moral right” to resort to a strike. Now, to say that the Right to Strike is not a Fundamental Right is one thing; but to say that it is not even a statutory right or  a moral right is quite another. That is why, this judgement was met with fervent reactions and remonstrations. The Indian citizenry urged that the judgment be reviewed by a larger bench. Alas! Nothing happened and today, fifteen years later, we find that the ratio decidendi still constitutes a binding precedent – as recently as last year, the High Court of Allahabad reiterated the Rangarajan rule. [Yed Ram v. U.P. State Public Service Tribunal (2017)].  Given this scenario, the idea that the Right to Strike is validated in our grundnorm is quite doubtful.

Judicial pronouncements have been significant not only in the context of our constitution, but also in the case of statutory regulation of the Right to Strike. Section 2(q) of the Act, which establishes the legal meaning of a ‘strike’ requires that there be a “cessation of work” caused as a result of a concerted refusal by employees to continue to work or accept employment. As early as in 1953, the Supreme Court clarified in the Buckingham and Carnatic Company case that even if the cessation of work is temporary and short-lived, a concerted refusal of the employees would amount to a ‘strike’ and would, therefore, attract relevant statutory provisions. Now, Section 22 requires inter alia that a notice be issued before striking in a public-utility service and that all such strikes be suspended during the pendency of any conciliation proceedings on the matter. Qualified by the Supreme Court’s dicta in the Essorpe Mills case (2008), workers are consequently required to give a six-month advance notice specifying the proposed date of strike and then wait for another fourteen days from the proposed strike-date to actually to start striking. But conciliation proceedings begin immediately when a notice of strike is given – therefore, if these proceedings last for more than fourteen days after the proposed strike-date (which they normally do), the workers would need to suspend the strike for as long as the proceedings are pending. By the time the proceedings end, the strike-notice expires and the workers would need to issue a fresh notice if they wish again to strike on the same matter. Thus, in effect, executing a strike is subjected to a long-drawn, tedious and tiresome procedure.

Failure to meet these procedural requirements would render a strike illegal [Section 24] and attract penalties of fines and imprisonment [Section 26]. In addition to that, employment contracts frequently provide for dismissing employees who participate in illegal strikes and cutting out on their wages during the strike period. In this context too, after the Syndicate Bank case (1995), the judiciary has constantly ruled that a workers’ service will be prevented from being terminated or wages for the strike-period will be paid to them, only if the strike is both legal and justified. Now, what a ‘justified strike’ is depends on the unique facts and circumstances of each case and is thus, a situation dependent on the judges’ subjective analysis of the matter. On the other hand, readers must note that criminal proceedings can straight-away be started against the workers participating in an illegal strike, notwithstanding the justifiability of such a strike. Thus, workers are likely to face harsh consequences if a strike goes wrong. The legal environment of a strike hence, points towards a sad reality – it is difficult for consequence-fearing workers and impossible for consequence-fearing government servants to resort to a strike. In this light, it would not be wrong to state the judicial and legislative trend operates in favour of the employers today. If the Right to Strike is to be secured for invigorating the labourers of India, the judiciary as well as the legislatures would need to play a very pro-labour role and act soon. Only then, some meaning will be made of the May Day.

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • WhatsApp
  • Pinterest
  • Print
  • Email

Like this:

Like Loading...
Tags: Article 19(1)(a)Article 19(1)(c)May Day
Admin

Admin

Related Posts

কৃষ্ণ বন্দনাৰে মুখৰিত হাউলীৰ ৰাস
Special Report

কৃষ্ণ বন্দনাৰে মুখৰিত হাউলীৰ ৰাস

by Admin
November 28, 2023
0

শংকৰদেৱৰ বাণীৰে কোচ বিহাৰত ৰাস উদযাপন যুগান্ত বায়ন যুগান্ত বায়ন কৃষ্ণ বন্দনাৰে মুখৰিত হাউলীৰ ৰাস ১৯২৮ চনৰ পৰা আৰম্ভ হোৱা...

Read more
Growing Old : Seniority and Serendipity

Growing Old : Seniority and Serendipity

November 28, 2023
snow covered mountains during daytime

Third Pole Warming- Humanity’s Himalayan Challenge

November 27, 2023
NGOs and the Law of Detrimental Effects

NGOs and the Law of Detrimental Effects

November 27, 2023
A Shade of Grey…

A Shade of Grey…

November 27, 2023
ধর্মীয় বিভেদতাৰ বহু দুৰৈত অৱস্থান কৰা নামনি অসমৰ লোক উৎসৱ ‘মহো-হো’

ধর্মীয় বিভেদতাৰ বহু দুৰৈত অৱস্থান কৰা নামনি অসমৰ লোক উৎসৱ ‘মহো-হো’

November 26, 2023
  • Trending
  • Comments
  • Latest
FREEDOM FIGHTERS OF ASSAM

FREEDOM FIGHTERS OF ASSAM

October 2, 2023
জ্যোতি সঙ্গীত – প্ৰথম খণ্ড

জ্যোতি প্ৰসাদ আগৰৱালাৰ কবিতা

August 7, 2021
Dholera: Modi’s Dream Project turns lifeless and barren!

Dholera: Modi’s Dream Project turns lifeless and barren!

July 27, 2023
আলাবৈ ৰণ: শৰাইঘাটৰ যুদ্ধৰ পটভূমিত

 লাচিত : শৰাইঘাটৰ যুদ্ধ আৰু ইয়াৰ ঐতিহাসিক তাৎপৰ্য

November 24, 2023
জ্যোতি সঙ্গীত – প্ৰথম খণ্ড

জ্যোতি প্ৰসাদ আগৰৱালাৰ কবিতা

3
The Dangers of AI is Coming: Beware!

The Dangers of AI is Coming: Beware!

1
man in black shirt standing on top of mountain drinking coffee

মোৰ হিমালয় ভ্ৰমণৰ অভিজ্ঞতা

0
crop businessman giving contract to woman to sign

Loan Waivers : LOOKING BACK@ 2015

0
COP 28 : Hopes for a sustainable planet must not ‘melt away’

COP 28 : Hopes for a sustainable planet must not ‘melt away’

November 28, 2023
কৃষ্ণ বন্দনাৰে মুখৰিত হাউলীৰ ৰাস

কৃষ্ণ বন্দনাৰে মুখৰিত হাউলীৰ ৰাস

November 28, 2023
Climate Change: Individual Action Versus Collective Action

Climate Change: Individual Action Versus Collective Action

November 28, 2023
Growing Old : Seniority and Serendipity

Growing Old : Seniority and Serendipity

November 28, 2023

Popular Stories

  • নাটকৰ ক্ৰমবিকাশ – এটি আলোকপাত

    নাটকৰ ক্ৰমবিকাশ – এটি আলোকপাত

    1703 shares
    Share 681 Tweet 426
  •  লাচিত : শৰাইঘাটৰ যুদ্ধ আৰু ইয়াৰ ঐতিহাসিক তাৎপৰ্য

    2077 shares
    Share 831 Tweet 519
  • আঞ্চলিকতাবাদ- কি, কিয় আৰু কেনেকৈ?

    908 shares
    Share 363 Tweet 227
  • অসমীয়া জনজাতীয় সংস্কৃতিঃ সমন্বয় আৰু সমাহৰণ

    1498 shares
    Share 599 Tweet 375
  • জ্যোতি প্ৰসাদ আগৰৱালাৰ কবিতা

    2425 shares
    Share 970 Tweet 606
  • FREEDOM FIGHTERS OF ASSAM

    2997 shares
    Share 1199 Tweet 749
  • অসমৰ লোকসংস্কৃতি

    1246 shares
    Share 498 Tweet 312
  • ইতিহাসৰ জলঙাইদি হাজো

    1041 shares
    Share 416 Tweet 260
  • মাজুলী আৰু ৰাস

    387 shares
    Share 155 Tweet 97
  • মিচিং সমাজ আৰু সংস্কৃতি

    1077 shares
    Share 431 Tweet 269
Mahabahu.com

Mahabahu is a collection of premium articles, opinions and writes from the writers all around the world.

Category

Site Links

  • About
  • Privacy Policy
  • Advertise
  • Careers
  • Contact

We are Social

Instagram Facebook
  • About
  • Privacy Policy
  • Advertise
  • Careers
  • Contact

© 2021 Mahabhahu.com - All Rights Reserved. Published by Powershift | Maintained by Webx

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News & Opinions
    • Politics
    • World
    • Business
    • National
    • Science
    • Tech
  • Mahabahu Magazine
    • November 2023 – Vol-II
    • November 2023 – Vol-I
    • October 2023
    • September 2023
  • Lifestyle
    • Fashion
    • Travel
    • Health
    • Food
  • Gallery
  • Mahabahu Books
    • Read Online
    • Free Downloads
  • E-Store

© 2021 Mahabhahu.com - All Rights Reserved. Published by Powershift | Maintained by Webx

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Oops!! The Content is Copy Protected.

Please ask permission from the Author.

Are you sure want to unlock this post?
Unlock left : 0
Are you sure want to cancel subscription?
%d bloggers like this: