New Delhi, 19 March (H.S.): A nine-judge Constitution Bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant reserved its judgment Thursday on the legal validity of a 1978 ruling expanding the term industry under the Industrial Disputes Act, following three days of arguments from Attorney General R Venkataramani, ASG KM Nataraj, and seniors like Indira Jaising, Shekhar Naphde, CU Singh, and Sanjay Hegde.
The 1978 Bangalore Water Supply & Sewerage Board verdict by a seven-judge bench broadened industry to encompass entities like hospitals and government departments, affording millions labor protections. The bench clarified its remit excludes revisiting the Act or 2020 Industrial Relations Code, focusing solely on the precedent's correctness.
Comprising CJI Surya Kant, Justices BV Nagarathna, Ujjal Bhuyan, Dipankar Datta, Joymalya Bagchi, Satish Chandra Sharma, VM Pancholi, PS Narasimha, and Alok Aradhe, the verdict could reshape labor jurisprudence.
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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar
