‘Financier not employer, not liable for compensation’
The Telangana High Court has held that a vehicle financier cannot be treated as the ‘principal employer’ or made liable to pay compensation to a driver employed by the vehicle owner. Justice Laxmi Narayana Alishetty allowed a petition filed by Rajendra Kumar Dharewa and set aside an order directing him to pay Rs 4,73,643 to an injured driver. The vehicle had been purchased by Abdul Jaleel under a hire-purchase agreement, with Dharewa as the financier. Jaleel had employed the claimant as the driver. After the driver was injured in an accident, the Commissioner for Workmen’s Compensation held the financier liable on the ground that he had control over the vehicle. The court disagreed, noting that Dharewa’s role was limited to providing financial assistance.
No employer-employee link, HC sets aside wage order
The Telangana High Court has set aside an order directing the Panchayat Raj department to pay wages and compensation to a worker, holding that there was no proof of an employer-employee relationship. Justice Laxmi Narayana Alishetty allowed a government petition challenging an order passed by the Authority under the Payment of Wages Act, 1936, in Sangareddy.
The dispute related to a Netherlands programme for providing protected water supply to villages in Medak district. The department said maintenance and watch-and-ward work had been entrusted to contractors, who were paid lump sums and were responsible for engaging workers. The worker claimed he had been engaged by the department and was entitled to wages. The court said the worker had to first establish an employer-employee relationship.
TGSRTC union election symbol plea dismissed
The Telangana High Court has refused to intervene in the allotment of an election symbol to the RTC Telangana Mazdoor Union for the upcoming TGSRTC workers’ union elections scheduled for October 9. Justice Juvvadi Sridevi dismissed a petition filed by the union, represented by its general secretary Thomas Reddy, challenging the allotment of the ‘ladder’ symbol to it. The union claimed that it had been using the ‘bow and arrow’ symbol for several years and had contested more than two previous elections with the same symbol. It alleged that the officials had acted arbitrarily by allotting the symbol to the RTC Workers Union.