BENGALURU: The Karnataka High Court on Tuesday directed the State Government to file a statement regarding the consu-ltation done before amending the Karnataka Industrial Employment (Standing Orders) Rules. Hearing a PIL questioning the constitutional validity of the amendments, a division bench of Chief Justice Abhay Shreeniwas Oka and Justice Ashok S Kinagi issued a notice to the Labour Department.
The petition was filed by the Karnataka Industrial and Other Establishments Employees Federation. The petitioner’s counsel argued that employers had already taken coercive action based on the notification, taking advantage of the Covid-19 situation. The bench said the stay cannot be granted without giving an opportunity to the state government to submit its response.