New Delhi, Jul 3: The 58-day protracted strike by Air India pilots may be nearing its end after the Delhi High Court today asked them to join duty within 48 hours and the management to sympathetically consider their grievances.
A formal decision on calling off the strike will be taken by the managing committee in Mumbai, sources in the Indian Pilots Guild, which is spearheading the agitation, said.
The IPG statement came after its counsel, Geeta Luthra, told the court that the striking pilots numbering 434 will join their duties in 48 hours.
Lalit Bhasin, counsel for the airlines management, said, “Due to the kind intervention of the Hon'ble High Court Justice Reva Khetrapal, the strike has been unconditionally called off with immediate effect.”
During the two-hour long proceedings, the judge said the pilots are not “goondas or criminal elements. You consider their grievances after talking to them.”
“The senior counsel (Luthra) appearing for the pilots has said that her clients will immediately call off the strike and join their duties in 48 hours, by giving joining reports or the report expressing their willingness to join the duty.
“The AI management shall sympathetically consider the grievances of the pilots including the aspect of reinstatement of those pilots whose services were terminated as a consequence to their strike,” Justice Khetrapal said while disposing of the pilots' plea for a direction to the management to take back the 101 sacked pilots, including 10 IPG office bearers.
In Mumbai, the IPG welcomed the court's order. “The court has made very positive observations. It has said that all pilots should be taken back and no distinction should be made between those sacked and others. We are happy with the court's observations,” IPG joint secretary Tauseef Mukadamn said.
The pilots went on strike on May 7 over demands for better career progression. The airlines management took a tough stand sacking 101 pilots including 10 office bearers of the IPG which was also derecognised.
Justice Khetrapal, who also sought a report from the conciliator by July 9, was hearing an application of the IPG which had alleged that the management has created a “hostile environment” by sacking the striking pilots and also derecognising it.
The court directed the pilots as well as the management to appear before the conciliator, Chief Labour Commissioner N K Prasad, on July 5 at 4.30pm.
Appearing for the management, Bhasin said the court should not entertain the pilots' plea as they are in contempt. He submitted that the management is ready to talk to the pilots once they call off their strike.
“They are in complete disobedience of the court's orders for the last two months and they need to call off the strike first before talking to the management regarding their demands.
“Let the counsel for the pilots make a statement before this court that they are ready to call off the strike today. They should not make any pre-condition to call off the strike. First they should obey the court's order and then talk to the management,” Bhasin said.
To this submission, the court asked the pilots to call off their strike.
The pilots' counsel submitted that the management has treated the pilots in two categories - those pilots whose services have been terminated and those pilots who are in service but are also part of the strike.
She sought the court's directions to the management to treat all 434 agitating pilots, including those who were sacked, as one entity and to reinstate the ones who were terminated.
“My concern is the issue should be resolved at the earliest. Nobody should suffer, neither the pilots nor the airlines. The pilots are not ‘gundas' or criminal element. you consider their grievance after talking to them,” Justice Khetrapal said.
The airlines said it has incurred losses to the tune of over Rs.600 crore as a result of the prolonged strike.
