In bid to prevent the proposed strike by its employees, the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd (BMRCL) on Friday requested the Karnataka High Court to lift the stay imposed last year on the government's action of extending the provisions of the Karnataka Essential Services Maintenance Act (ESMA) to the metro services.
An application filed by the BMRCL in this regard came up for hearing before Justice L. Narayana Swamy, who adjourned further hearing till March 20 asking the counsel for the BMRCL Employees' Union to file its response.
Union not recognised
In its application, the BMRCL said that the union is not a recognised one and not engaged in discussions on employees' issue, and any action by employees on the call for strike given by the un-recognised union would be illegal. The BMRCL contended that the State government, which has the power to govern the BMRCL, is vested with the power to invoke ESMA to maintain metro services.
Impact on commuters
Pointing out that the issue related to employees are being adjudicated before labour authorities, the BMRCL said that ‘the proposed strike will cripple the transport mechanism in the city of Bengaluru, resulting in huge distress to commuters. The strike is not in the interest of the city’.
The court on October 7, 2017 had stayed the government's July 17, 2017 notification of bringing BMRCL services under the ESMA on a petition filed by the union, which has claimed that only the Union government, which governs the BMRCL, has the power to invoke ESMA.
