Jurisdiction of Registrar

2013 PLC 170 KARACHI-HIGH-COURT-SINDH Judicial Precedent

Ss. 9, 15 & 24Election for determination of Collective Bargaining UnitRejection of result of election and order to hold fresh polling for conducting election of office-bearersJurisdiction of RegistrarElections were held and results were announced in compliance of order of the Supreme CourtElection result indicated that petitioners were elected to various posts of office-bearers

Subsequently Registrar of Trade Unions, rejected result of election holding that fresh polling for conducting elections of office-bearers of union be held

Registrar, under S.9 of the Industrial Relations Act, 2008 was not authorised to order change of the Trade Union

Registrar could refuse to register such change, but if Registrar remained silent, the mandate of law appeared to be that the change was to be deemed to have been registered

Once Registrar had registered change, it had no power to call back or recall his order as had been done in the present case

Once Registrar had given effect to the change, party aggrieved could approach the Labour Court under subsection (7) of S.9 of Industrial Relations Act, 2008, and Labour Court, if it came to the conclusion that while registering the change some illegality had been committed, could order fresh election under supervision of the Registrar

Registrar on its own had no power to recall order passed by it

Where Registrar first registered the change and thereafter recalled its order, it was called a situation of "judicial anarchy"

No power of review had been conferred by any of the provisions contained in Industrial Relations Act, 2008 on the Registrar

Even under the doctrine of locus poenitentiae, once decisive steps having been taken; and vested rights having been created, it was no longer available to the department or executive authority to retrace its steps and to recall its order

In the present case, once change of office-bearers had been notified in consequence of the result of elections, it was not available to Registrar to recall its orders

Impugned order could not be sustained, and same was set aside, in circumstances.