Susanta Kumar Datta And ORS. v. National Jute Manufactures Corporation Limited And ORS
IN THE HIGH COURT AT CALCUTTA
CONSTITUTIONAL WRIT JURISDICTION APPELLATE SIDE 11 04.4.2025 Sc Ct. no.2 WPA 4767 OF 2025 ------------- Susanta Kumar Datta & Ors.
Vs.
National Jute Manufactures Corporation Limited & Ors.
Mr. Indrajit Biswas Mr. Rakesh Kr. Pandey.
....For the Petitioners Mr. Soumik Ghosh Ms. Karuna Bose.
....For the Respondent Nos.1 & 2 Mr. Shiv Chandra Prasad Mr. Nikhil Kumar Gupta.
....For the Respondent No.3 Subject to payment of the deficit court fees by all the petitioners, this order shall be effected. Mr. Indrajit Biswas, learned Advocate appears for the petitioners.
Mr. Soumik Ghosh, learned Advocate appears for the respondent nos. 1 and 2, the employer.
Mr. Nikhil Kumar Gupta, learned Advocate led by Mr. Shiv Chandra Prasad, learned Counsel appears for the respondent no.3, the Regional Provident Fund Commissioner.
The petitioners are the retired employees of the respondent no.1 (for short NJMC). They retired in the year 2011 but since then they have not received their Provident Fund dues.
The law is well settled that the Provident Fund dues cannot be withheld. It is a statutory due. The day an employee retires, his/her right accrues to receive the Provident Fund dues immediately.
The issue in this writ petition though at the instance of other employees had travelled before this Court earlier when a coordinate Bench passed its order dated July 13, 2023 in WPA 11044 of 2022. Then again the issue had travelled before the Hon'ble Division Bench in MAT 1357 of 2020, when the Hon'ble Division Bench passed its order dated November 20, 2024 and had observed as under :
"12.
Admittedly, the NJMC is at best an umbrella institution of the four jute mills. Once exemption under Section 17 of the Act of 1956 is granted, the liability to pay PF and interest for delayed payments thereon vests on the trust which is created for the maintenance of PF dues. The trustees are the persons who are actually liable. Admittedly, since the entire PF trust has been transferred to the PF authorities the liability to pay interest for the period indicated above, by the Single Bench, would have to be borne by the PF authorities and not the owner much less the trustees.
13. This Court is surprised to note as to why the PF authorities have not instituted proceedings inter alia under Section 7A of the Act, against the trustees and/or the real persons behind the trust of the four jute mills under the NJMC.
14. It is expected that proceedings are drawn up immediately after calculation of PF contributions of the employer and the employee from the date of inception of the trust, if necessary.
15. In the above circumstances, the impugned order shall stand modified to the extent of directing PF authorities particularly respondent No.3 in the writ petition being the Regional Provident Fund Commissioner-II to pay interest at the rate of 12 percent per annum for the period from 18th January, 2015 till August,
to respondent/workman namely Yogesh Kumar Garg within two weeks from the date of receipt of a copy of this order. In default whereof the rate of interest shall stand increased to 15 percent.
16. It is made clear that the above order confined only to the payment receipt on interest on PF by the respondent workman. All other proceedings against the concerned workman that are pending shall continue in accordance with law.
17. With the aforesaid direction, the appeal is disposed of."
The direction of the Hon'ble Division Bench was restricted to interest quantum only. In the instant case, the petitioners have not even received the principal amount. The legal issues discussed by the Hon'ble Division Bench will be of same effect, be it for interest or for principal so long it touches the Provident Fund dues. Hence, following the direction of the Hon'ble Division Bench this Court passes the directions hereunder : I) The respondent no.3 being the Regional Provident Fund Commissioner shall pay the entire principal amount to the respective petitioners along with interest @12% per annum from the next date of retirement of the respective petitioners till the date of tendering of the amount to them upon compliance of all the statutory requirements and formalities by the petitioners;
II) In the event, the petitioners are required to submit the relevant documents and records as per the requisition of the Provident Fund Authority, they shall do the same forthwith
and if they require to submit any statutory form they shall submit the same also forthwith;
III) The entire exercise shall be carried out and completed including making of payment to the petitioners positively within a period of two weeks from date of communication of this order. In default, the rate of interest shall stand increased to 15% per annum.
IV) It is expected that necessary proceeding under Section 7A of Provident Fund Act shall be drawn up immediately by the Provident Fund Authority after calculation of the Provident Fund contribution of employer and employees from the date of inception of the trust, if necessary.
With the above observations and directions, this writ petition, WPA 4767 of 2025 stands disposed of, without any order as to costs.
Photostat certified copy of this order, if applied for, be furnished expeditiously.
(Aniruddha Roy, J.)