Sadanand Moot 02
Sadanand Moot 02
Sadanand Moot 02
BEFORE
V.
SADANAND……RESPONDENT
TABLE OF CONTENTS
TITLE PAGE NO
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS 03
INDEX OF AUTHORITIES 04
STATEMENT OF JURISDICTION 07
STATEMENT OF FACTS 08
SUMMARY OF ARGUMENTS 10
PRAYER 20
LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS
INDEX OF AUTHORITIES
i. LIST OF CASES
1) Additional District Magistrate Delhi v Shri Ram, [2000] 3 SCR 1019 (India)
2) Amit Kapoor v. Ramesh Chander, (2010) 5 SCC 246
3) Bharat Forge Co. Ltd. v. Uttam Manohar Nakate, (2005) 2 SCC 489
4) Blyth v Birmingham Waterworks Co – 1856 11 EX 781
5) Coimbatore District Central Coop. Bank v. Employees Assn., (2007) 4 SCC 669
6) Corpn. of Calcutta v. Padma Debi, (2003) 7 SCC 389
7) Delhi Cloth and General Mills Co Ltd v Labor Court (1970) I LLJ 23 (SC)
8) Devinder Singh v Municipal Council, (2011) 6 SCC 584
9) Donoghue vs Stevenson, 1932 UK House of Lords 100
10) Eastern Electric & Trading Co. v. Baldev Lal, (1975) 4 SCC 684
11) Global Energy Ltd. v Central Electricity Regulatory Commission, [2009] AIR SC 3194
(India)
12) Govind v State of MP, AIR 1975 SC 1378 (India)
13) Hedley byrne v Heller Elaw 1964 AC 465 House of Lords
14) Indian Iron and Steel Co. Ltd and Ors v Their Workmen 1958 SCR 667
15) M.C. Mehta And Anr vs Union of India & Ors on 20 December, 1986
16) Minor Veeran vs T.V. Krishnamoty, AIR 1966 Kerela 172
17) P.M. Ashwathanarayana Setty v. State of Karnataka, [1989] Supp (l) SCC 696 (India)
18) Palsgraf v Long Island Railroad Co [1928] 248 N.Y. 339
19) People’s Union for Civil Liberties v Union Of India, [1996] AIR 1997 SC 568 (India)
20) Philips v Williams Whitley, Ltd (1938) All ER 566
21) Rajni Kumar v. Suresh Kumar Malhotra. (2004) 3 SCC 297
22) Ram Singh v. Central Bureau of Narcotics, (2005) 6 SCC 1
23) Ravi Yashwant Bhoir v. Collector (2012) 5 SCC 342
24) RE Delhi Laws Act Case AIR 1951 SC 332 (India)
25) Saran Motors (P) Ltd v Vishwanath (1964) 2 LLJ 139 (SC)
STATEMENT OF JURISDICTION
The appellants in this instant case have exercised the Appellate Jurisdiction of the Honorable
Supreme Court under Article 132 of the Indian Constitution.
Statement of Facts.
Sadanand was an employee of Capital Corporation in 1988, and was hired to do the work
of a machine operator.
On the 22nd of November 1990, there was a scuffle between two employees, and
Sadanand who was working at the time went to pacify the situation. While he went to do
that, the machine Sadanand was operating was left activated with raw materials inside of
it.
By the time Sadanand returned, an entire 20-22 minutes later, the raw materials had
already been damaged and rendered unusable. It is to be noted that Sadanand knew
that the raw materials were sensitive in nature.
The loss of the raw materials amounted to a total of 15,000 INR; and due to the non-
availability of raw materials, the Corporation also lost out on a deal that could have made
them close to 10 Lakh INR.
A disciplinary committee was set up to review the conduct of Sadanand and the
committee found him to be negligent and initially suspended him for a period of 1 month.
Sadanand also accepted his mistake.
Furthermore, despite being suspended for a month, Sadanand returned to work on the 24th
of November. This caused the disciplinary committee to review their decision and they
decided to dismiss him from his job due to his negligent behaviour.
Sadanand filed a case in the Labour Tribunal, and both the Labour Tribunal and the High
Court erroneously awarded the judgement in favour of Sadanand, due to which Capital
Corporation has appealed this instant case to the Supreme Court in the interest of Justice,
and Equity.
STATEMENT OF ISSUES
ISSUE 1
Whether Sadanand’s actions were negligent in nature?
ISSUE 2
Whether the dismissal of Sadanand was in accordance with the law and did the Labor
Tribunal have the power to re-examine the Case?
ISSUE 3
Whether Gravity of offence has to be taken into consideration while dismissing an employee?
SUMMARY OF ARGUMENTS
It is submitted before this Honorable Court that Sadanand’s action were negligent in nature, and
the counsel for the appellant will attempt to establish the same through 3 distinct parameters –
firstly, that there was an existence of a duty of care; secondly, the defendant was in breach of the
duty of care; and thirdly, the victim suffered injuries and damages as a consequence thereof.
It is submitted before this Honorable Court that Sadanand’s dismissal was in accordance with the
law of the land, and that the Labor Tribunal did not have powers to re-examine the case as there
was a departmental inquiry constituted which was non-bias in nature.
It is contended before this Honorable Court that gravity of an offence has to be taken into
consideration while considering dismissal of an employee; and such dismissal has to pass the
doctrine of proportionality which the dismissal of the defendant does in this instant case.
ARGUMENTS ADVANCED
It is the submission of the counsel for the appellant that in this instant case,
Sadanand’s action were negligent in nature. The appellants will attempt to establish
the same in the following arguments.
It is the submission of the counsel for the appellants that to establish a case of
negligence, one needs to establish 3 distinct parameters –
It is the humble submission of the appellant that the law implies a duty of care on a
party who may or may not have been negligent, if the party possessed special skills or
attributes and thus the common neighbour (in this case, the plaintiff) trusts him to
exercise a duty of care. If there is a case of negligent behaviour, though honest and
unintentional, a breach of duty may give rise to a cause of action. 2 In this instant case,
Sadanand was hired for utilising his skills as a machine operator, a duty which he
ignored when he went to pacify a squabble between the workers, something that was
completely out of the scope of his job.
1
Minor Veeran vs T.V. Krishnamoty, AIR 1966 Kerela 172
2
Hedley byrne v Heller Elaw 1964 AC 465 House of Lords
It is the submission of the appellants that these 3 distinct parameters are met in this
instant case. Sadanand was a machine worker, who understood that the leaving his
machine while it was on with raw materials could have disastrous affects, as it ended up
resulting in the loss of raw materials worth 15,000/- INR and affected a subsequent deal
of more than 10 Lakhs.
Furthermore, to the question of fairness in establishing a duty of care, the counsels for the
appellant submit that due to the fact that defendant was hired because of his special skills
related to the operation of machinery, it is only fair to assume that the defendant would
do his job without any distractions, and certainly without causing damage to his
employer. Therefore, it is fair, just, and reasonable to impose a duty of care.
In the landmark case of Donoughue v Stevenson, the court held that – “You must take
reasonable care to avoid such acts or omissions which you can reasonably foresee would
be likely to injure your neighbor.”5
In this instant case, it was foreseeable by Sadanand that the appellant would incur
damages due to this action; in fact, Sadanand even stipulated that he was in the wrong.
By the above-mentioned arguments, it is the submission of the counsel for the appellants
that a duty of care has been established.
3
State of Karnataka v State of Andhra Pradesh AIR 2001 S.C
4
Palsgraf v Long Island Railroad Co [1928] 248 N.Y. 339
5
Donoghue vs Stevenson, 1932 UK House of Lords 100
It is the submission of the counsel for the appellants that there was a clear breach in the
duty of care displayed by the defendant. It is argued that a man/institution is acting
unreasonably if he holds such professional skills which requires him to show an average
amount of competence in relations to discharge of proper duty and care in regards to the
profession and he fails to take adequate measures and ends up hurting the victims.6
In this instant case, Sadanand was hired for the specific purpose of operating machines,
he was selected because he holds such professional expertise. However, he wilfully
ignored his responsibilities and that resulted in the loss of an extraordinary amount of
money.
In the landmark case of Blyth v Birmingham Waterworks Co, the court defined the
essence of negligence as – “Negligence is the omission to do something which a
reasonable man, guided upon those considerations which ordinarily regulate the conduct
of human affairs, would do, or doing something which a prudent and reasonable man
would not do.”7
It is submitted before this Honourable Court that in this instant case, a bare perusal of the
facts would make any layman prudent person understand that leaving the machine whilst
it was on and had raw materials was not the right thing to do, hence the action amounted
to negligence.
Furthermore, a worker can forsake liability from a negligent act, if said act happened
during the course of their employment. 8 However, a bare perusal of the facts of the case
would stipulate the evident fact that stopping the squabble between the two employees
was not part of Sadanand’s ordinary course of employment. He was hired for his skills as
a machine operator, and nothing else. Sadanand cannot forsake liability in this instant
case.
Thus, one the basis of the above facts and arguments it is clear that there was a clear
breach in the duty of care by Sadanand.
6
Philips v Williams Whitley, Ltd (1938) All ER 566
7
Blyth v Birmingham Waterworks Co – 1856 11 EX 781
8
Scott v. London & St. Katherine Dock Company, 1865 HCC 596
Through a bare perusal of the facts at hand, it is prima facie clear that the appellant has
gone through significant economic loss, - firstly due to the loss of the raw materials,
which amounted to a loss near 15,000 INR, secondly, due to the loss of raw materials, it
led to a loss of an imminent contract whose figures went upwards of 10 Lakhs.
The occurrence of the unfortunate event points to a prima facie case, as it was a result of
want of due care. The maxim of Res Ipsa Loquitor (the object/event/thing speaks for
itself) can be applicable here, as the injury caused to the appellant was a direct result due
to the negligence of the defendant.9
Therefore, in light of the above arguments, it is clear that the defendant Sadanand owed a duty of
care to the appellant, which he breached, resulting in severe economic loss to the appellant.
Therefore, it is the contention of the counsel for the appellants that Sadanand is liable for
negligence in this instant case.
Issue No 2 – Whether the dismissal of Sadanand was in accordance with the law and
did the Labor Tribunal have the power to re-examine the case?
9
M.C. Mehta And Anr vs Union of India & Ors on 20 December, 1986
It is the submission of the counsel for the appellants that in this instant case, the dismissal
of Sadanand was in accordance with the law of the land. The counsels for the appellants
will attempt to establish the same in subsequent arguments.
It is submitted before this Honorable Court that for the dismissal of Sadanand to be valid,
he has to come under the purview of a ‘workman’ under Section 2(s) of the Industrial
Disputes Act of 1947. The definition can be understood as, -
The court, in Devinder Singh v Municipal Council analyzed Section 2(s) and held that for
a workman to fall under Section 2(s) of the ID Act of 1947, the following factors have to
be fulfilled -
10
Section 2(s) – Industrial Disputes Act of 1947.
11
Devinder Singh v Municipal Council, (2011) 6 SCC 584
It is the submission of the counsel for the appellant that in this instant case, the work
Sadanand did was technical in nature, as he was a machine operator. Furthermore, there
was a direct master-servant relationship as he was an employee in the company; and
lastly, he does not fall under any of the exceptions under Section 2(s) of the ID Act of
1947. Therefore, it is established that he is a workman under the definition of Section 2(s)
of the ID Act of 1947.
It is the submission of the counsel for the appellants that a Labor Tribunal can only
overturn or re-examine a decision of the management, in the following cases –
i. There is want of bona fides or good faith; or
ii. It is a case of victimization or unfair labor practices or violation of the
principles of natural justice, or
iii. There is basic error of facts; or
iv. There has been a perverse finding on the materials.12
It is argued by the counsels for the appellants that in this instant case, none of the above-
mentioned conditions are satisfied. There has been no violation of good faith or bona
fides, basic error of facts, or perverse finding on the materials as the company as the
defendant himself stipulated to the fact that he was in the wrong here, and accepted his
mistake. Furthermore, he was informed of the fact that there was going to be a
disciplinary hearing, and he could have presented his case therein, and this points to the
fact that there was no violation of the principles of natural justice.
Furthermore, in the landmark Indian Iron and Steel Co Ltd case, the court held that if the
decision of the management was without bias, and inherently fair, the labor tribunal could
not re-examine its decision.13 In this instant case, the management could a fair decision to
terminate the employment of the defendant as his conduct had resulted in the loss of an
extraordinary amount of money. Furthermore, Sadanand himself attested to his mistake.
To further prove that there was no mala-fide intention, or violation of natural justice, the
court has held in several cases that the mere fact that an enquiry officer is an employee of
12
Indian Iron and Steel Co. Ltd and Ors v Their Workmen 1958 SCR 667
13
Indian Iron and Steel Co. Ltd and Ors v Their Workmen 1958 SCR 667
the management does not mean that there is an inherent bias towards the management, or
that they will decide the case in favor of the management. 14 Furthermore, one has to keep
in mind that the officers undertaking these inquires are not specialized as lawyers, and
therefore it cannot they cannot be expected to adduce and examine evidence at every
point of time.15 However, as was held in the Saran Motors (P) Ltd v Vishwanath, unless
there is a presence of a special individual bias, the finding of the inquiry cannot be set
aside.16
In the case of The Punjab National Bank Ltd v Its Workmen,17 the court held that –
“Where such a proper enquiry has been held in accordance with the provisions of the
relevant standing orders and it does not appear that the employer was guilty of
victimization or any unfair labor practice, that tribunal is generally reluctant to interfere
with the impugned order.” In this instant case, there has been no victimization of the
defendant, and therefore the Labor Tribunal went beyond its power to re-examine the
findings of the inquiry.
Therefore, on the basis of the above arguments, it is submitted by the counsels for the
appellants that the dismissal of Sadanand was done in accordance to the law of the land,
and the Labor Court went beyond its power to re-examine the findings of the inquiry.
Issue No 3 – Whether Gravity of offence has to be taken into consideration while dismissing
an employee?
It is the submission of the counsels for the appellants that gravity of offence has to be
taken into consideration while dismissing an employee. The counsels will attempt to
prove the same in subsequent arguments.
14
Delhi Cloth and General Mills Co Ltd v Labor Court (1970) I LLJ 23 (SC)
15
TELCO v SC Prasad (1969) 3 SCC 372
16
Saran Motors (P) Ltd v Vishwanath (1964) 2 LLJ 139 (SC)
MEMORIAL for APPELLANT
MOOT COURT AND INTERNSHIP – CLINICAL PAPER I
17
The Punjab National Bank Ltd v Its Workmen (1960) 1 SCR 806; AIR 1960 SC
It is argued by the counsels for the appellants that punishment given by an employer to an
employee has to fit the doctrine of proportionality. The Doctrine of Proportionality has
been understood by the Court as the following, -
'Proportionality' is a principle where the Court is concerned with the process, method or manner in which
the decision-maker has ordered his priorities, reached a conclusion or arrived at a decision. The very
essence of decision-making consists in the attribution of relative importance to the factors and
considerations in the case. The doctrine of proportionality thus steps in focus true nature of exercise the
elaboration of a rule of permissible priorities.’ ‘De Smith states that 'proportionality' involves 'balancing
test' and 'necessity test'. Whereas the former ('balancing test') permits scrutiny of excessive onerous
penalties or infringement of rights or interests and a manifest imbalance of relevant considerations, the
latter ('necessity test') requires infringement of human rights to the least restrictive alternative.’18
It is argued in this instant case that the punishment given to Sadanand matches the
doctrine of proportionality, and the two tests, - i.e., the balancing test and the necessary
test. Sadanand’s actions led to the Corporation losing Lakhs of Rupees, and therefore
taking this into consideration, it is only fair that be removed from this job due to this
extremely negligent behavior. Furthermore, the question of arbitrariness does not arise in
this instant case as Sadanand was informed that an inquiry committee was being set up,
and the defendant himself stipulated to his mistake.
It is further argued that once the misconduct of an employee is proved either through an
inquiry or the evidence placed before a tribunal, punishment imposed cannot be interfered
with by the Tribunal except in those cases wherein the punishment is so harsh as to
suggest victimization.19 In this instant case, the conduct of the employee was proved
through the inquiry process, and a punishment was handed out. The Labor Tribunal has
no power to interfere in said punishment.
The counsels for the appellants submit that a proved misconduct is the antithesis of
victimization in an industrial relations setting. It is obligatory on part of the workman
concerned to plead and prove the acts of victimization.20 It is humbly submitted before
this
18
Coimbatore District Central Coop. Bank v. Employees Assn., (2007) 4 SCC 669
19
Eastern Electric & Trading Co. v. Baldev Lal, (1975) 4 SCC 684
20
Bharat Forge Co. Ltd. v. Uttam Manohar Nakate, (2005) 2 SCC 489
Honorable Court that not only is the misconduct proved, and in fact attested to, the
defendant in this case has provided no proof of victimization that can overrule the ruling
of the departmental inquiry.
The constitutional requirement for judging the question of reasonableness and fairness of
a dismissal by a statutory authority must be considered on a factual basis, and it cannot
have a straight-jacket formula.21 A bare perusal of the facts in this case would make a
layman understand that the offence committed by Sadanand led to extraordinary losses on
part of the appellant. Facts in this case justify the dismissal of Sadanand from the
corporation.
Lastly, it is the contention of the counsel for the appellant that only if the punishment is
“shockingly disproportionate” can further judicial scrutiny be allowed into the
management’s decision.22 In this instant case, not only did the defendant’s conduct led to
a loss of Lakhs of rupees, he himself attested to his mistake.
Thus, on the basis of the above-mentioned arguments, the counsels for the appellant
contend that gravity of offence has to be taken into consideration whilst considering
dismissal, and in this instant case, the offence does allow for a dismissal to take place.
21
Coimbatore District Central Coop. Bank v. Employees Assn., (2007) 4 SCC 669
22
Coimbatore District Central Coop. Bank v. Employees Assn., (2007) 4 SCC 669
Prayer.
Wherefore in the light of the issues raised, arguments advanced and authorities cited, it is humbly
requested that this Hon’ble Court may be pleased to adjudge and declare:
And pass such order writ or direction as the Hon’ble Court deems fit and proper in the light of
Justice, Equity and Good Conscience, for this the Petitioners shall duty bound pray.