HYDERABAD, May 21: Sindh High Court, Hyderabad Circuit Bench, here on Monday directed the Registrar of Trade Unions, Directorate of Labour, Qasimabad, to take appropriate action in the matter of M/s Habib Sugar Mills and the workers’ union.

The order was passed on a constitutional petition filed by the mills management seeking cancellation of registration of workers union.

Mehmood Abdul Ghani, advocate, who represented the mills management, challenged the formation of Workmen Union, referring to the rule 5 of Industrial Relations (Sindh) Rules 1973 which read, “the number of office bearers of any union must be in conformity with the number of workmen employed in the establishment at that time.”

He said that following elections in February last year, 21 office-bearers were elected as union representatives instead of 12 as the rule provided. He claimed that no annual audits of accounts were conducted as required under law.

These elections were accepted by the registrar of trade unions, he said. The point, he added, was raised with the registrar but no reply was given by him.

The lawyer pointed out that the union’s General Secretary, Syed Wasi Haider, was a dismissed employee and in view of dictum, laid down by high court, no such person could hold office of union even in the category of 25 percent outsiders’ quota. He said that the union had sought extension of its tenure by another year after Feb 2001 elections again in violation of rules. Admittedly, he said, a show cause notice was issued to the union but it was not known whether any reply was submitted.

Through the Additional AG Sindh, Masood A. Noorani, the Registrar of Trade Unions, Mohammad Bux Joyo, in his para-wise comments, said that in response to his show cause notice the union had assured rectification of irregularities. He undertook to comply with the orders, passed by this court.

The court directed both the parties to present their contentions to the registrar who would settle the dispute within a month and take appropriate action.