The Delhi High Court has imposed costs of ₹1 lakh on Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) for pursuing a case for 32 years against a conductor's claim for 17 months' back wages [DTC vs Rajender Prashad]..The case itself stemmed from the conductor's dismissal for allegedly taking ₹67 from passengers without issuing tickets to them.In the judgment delivered on September 2, Justice Amit Mahajan observed that the prolonged dispute resulted in abuse of the process of law and avoidable expenditure of public money.Hence, it refused to entertain the petition filed by DTC challenging a 2004 award passed by the Industrial Tribunal, which had allowed the conductor’s claim for back wages.“The continued litigation over such a limited claim, for an inordinately long period, amounts to an abuse of the process of law and has resulted in avoidable expenditure of public money,” the Court stated..The industrial dispute dating back to 1994, pertained to DTC’s action against its bus conductor, Rajender Prashad, for allegedly taking ₹67 from the passengers without issuing tickets to them. Disciplinary proceedings were initiated against Parshad and he was subsequently removed from service in 1996. On Parshad’s appeal to the Managing Director of DTC, he was reinstated without back wages.Parshad then raised an industrial dispute against the denial of back wages. The Industrial Tribunal allowed his plea, observing that the punishment awarded was illegal and baseless. It directed DTC to pay arrears of wages for the two-year period between 1996 and 1998.DTC moved the High Court challenging the Tribunal’s award. In 2005, the Court stayed the operation of the award..In the final verdict delivered on September 2, the Court upheld the Industrial Tribunal’s decision as reasonable and plausible. It observed that the manner in which DTC pursued the litigation, warrants imposition of costs on its officers.Thus, it imposed costs of ₹1 lakh, out of which ₹25,000 will have to be paid to the Delhi High Court Legal Services Committee, ₹50,000 to the Prime Minister Relief Fund and the remaining ₹25,000 to Parshad.The Court also granted liberty to DTC to recover the costs from the officer responsible for pursuing such “insignificant dispute.".Advocate Manisha Tyagi appeared for DTC.Advocates Rishabh Verma and Anil Aggarwal appeared for Parshad..[Read Judgment]
