In a major relief for 84 retrenched workers, the Karnataka High Court has ordered a private pharmaceutical company, Karnataka Malladi Biotics Limited, to pay ₹3 lakh compensation to each worker. The employees were removed from service in 2009 without obtaining prior permission from the State government, as required under the Industrial Disputes Act.
The court found that the company had more than 100 workers, including security guards and contract labourers, making government approval mandatory before retrenchment. The High Court ruled that the company violated labour laws and also drew adverse inference for withholding employment records. The judgment comes nearly 17 years after the workers lost their jobs.
