Bombay HC orders MSRTC striking employees to join work by April 22

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Published : Apr 6, 2022, 6:11 PM IST

Updated : Apr 8, 2022, 5:53 PM IST

Mumbai HC orders ST employees to join work till April 15

The Bombay High Court on Wednesday directed the striking Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) employees to resume duty by April 22 and asked the corporation to take back its decision to initiate disciplinary action against the errant workers.

Mumbai: The Bombay High Court on Wednesday directed the striking Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC) employees to resume duty by April 22 and asked the corporation to take back its decision to initiate disciplinary action against the errant workers.

Thousands of employees of MSRTC have been on strike since last November demanding that they be treated on par with state government employees and that the cash-strapped transport corporation be merged with the government.

A division bench of Chief Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice M S Karnik noted that the Maharashtra government has accepted the report submitted by a three-member committee by which the demands for the merger of MSRTC with the state government and for the corporation workers to be treated as state government employees have not been accepted. The government would, however, provide financial assistance to MSRTC for four years.

"A policy decision has been taken by the government. If MSRTC employees are aggrieved with this then they can challenge the same as per law," the bench said. The bench was hearing a petition filed by MSRTC seeking the initiation of contempt action against the striking workers for not resuming duty despite orders of the high court.

Chief Justice Datta on Wednesday said that nothing survives in the petition. "The employees should now resume duty. We request the MSRTC to grant time till April 15 to the employees to resume work and if any action has been initiated against any worker then the MSRTC shall review the same and take the employee back on duty," he said.

Opining on the verdict, advocate Sadavarte said, "The court has said that the MSRTC employees with charges pressed against them won't be allowed to report for duty. We asked them what exactly these charges are and if they are serious in nature. We also informed that there are no proofs of buses being damaged. The court said it would rethink the matter and give a final decision in the next hearing tomorrow." He further added that though around 167 MLAs have signed the merger, none took any substantial steps to execute it.

"The court told us that if the report is incorrect, you should challenge it. We are going to challenge the policy of the state government. Employees will decide whether to resume work or not. Tomorrow's hearing will clear more things for us," he added.

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Last Updated :Apr 8, 2022, 5:53 PM IST
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