1976 PLP 658 (PLC)

REGISTRAR, TRADE UNIONS Appeal No. 120 of 1975, decided on 18th August 1975.

S. 8(7)-Change in office-bearers - Appeal to Labour Court Maintainable only if application of Union seeking change rejected by Registrar--Registrar withholding his reply for indefinite period- Union, in circumstances-, held, justified in presuming acceptance of change and can continue functioning. Khalilur Rehman for Appellant. Nemo for Respondent. This appeal has been filed under section 8 (i) of the Industrial Relations Ordinance, 1969. It is stated in the appeal that the applicant Union sent some change in the office-bearers to the Registrar of Trade Unions on 7-4-1975. In reply to this letter, the Registrar, Trade Unions demanded some documents by his letter dated 11-4-3975 and those documents were duly handed over on the same day. However, the application of the appellant-Union has neither been accepted nor rejected nor any intimation has been given 'to it by the Registrar of Trade Unions though about 4 months have passed. I have heard Mr. Khalilur Rehman for the appellant. None is present on behalf of the Registrar of Trade Unions though the respondent was duly served on 8-8-1975. After going through the Memo of Appeal and the documents placed on record and also considering the effect of section 8(7) of the Industrial Relations Ordinance, 1969, 1 am of the view that the appeal is not maintainable inasmuch as there has been no rejection to the change sought by the appellant-Union. Appeal is maintainable only in case the Registrar of Trade Unions rejects the change sought by any Union and since admittedy there has been no rejection at all, no appeal lies. Mr. Khalilur Rehman has contended that if the Registrar does not pass any order in the Union's application dated 7-4-1975 for an indefinite period and if no appeal lies under section 8(7) of the Industrial Relations Ordinance, 1969, then the Union would certainly suffer as it cannot perform its functions I quite agree with the difficulties of the Union in these circumstances but my view in this behalf is very much clear to the effect that if the Registrar of Trade Unions does not reply to the intimation sent to it by any Union, it regard to the change, then the Union is justified in presuming that th: change sought by it has been duly accepted and that it can continue with its functions without any hinderance. In view of the above the appeal dismissed as not maintainable