M/s. U. P. ELECTRIC SUPPLY CO., LTD. vs THE WORKMEN OF M/s. S. N. CHOUDHARY,CONTRACTORS AND ANOTH

The Supreme Court held that the Industrial Tribunal lacked jurisdiction to decide whether the workmen were employees of the appellant company or the contractors, as this issue was not referred to the Tribunal under the U.P. Industrial Disputes Act, 1947, specifically sections 34 (Proviso) and 5. The Court emphasized that the Tribunal could only adjudicate on matters explicitly referred to it, and since the question of the non-abolition of the contract system was not included in the reference, the Tribunal's decision was invalid. Consequently, the appeal was allowed, and the Tribunal's award was set aside.