$~13 * IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI # CNR No. DLHC010405412026 + W.P.(C) 12553/2026 & CM APPLs. 58237-58238/2026 NIRMAL SINGH & ORS. .....Petitioners Through: Mr. Chandra Mohan Jha, Mr. Sahil Raja, Mr. Alok Kumar and Ms. Draksha Khan, Advocates. versus STATE BANK OF INDIA & ANR. .....Respondents Through: Mr. Rajiv Kapur, SC with Mr. Akshit Kapur, AOR for SBI. CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE SANJEEV NARULA O R D E R % 14.09.2026 1. The Petitioners are stated to have been engaged by the State Bank of India as Customer Relationship Executives on a contractual basis under its SBI Wealth programme. Their engagements commenced between the years 2017 and 2020 and have, according to them, continued thereafter. The principal relief sought in the petition is regularisation of their services, together with consequential benefits and parity in pay with regular employees. The Petitioners also seek protection against their replacement by another set of contractual employees. 2. During the course of hearing, the Court drew the attention of counsel for the Petitioners to the statutory remedy available for adjudication of an industrial dispute under the Industrial Relations Code, 2020. The case This is a digitally signed order. The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 17/09/2026 at 12:12:16 pleaded by the Petitioners is that the work being performed by them is perennial in nature; that they have continued on contractual terms for several years; that their duties are comparable to those discharged by regular employees of the Bank; and that their continued contractual engagement, despite the continuing requirement for the work, amounts to an unfair labour practice. 3. These assertions would necessarily require examination of several factual matters, including the nature of the duties actually performed by the Petitioners, the terms and mode of their engagement, the availability of regular posts, the basis of the parity claimed by them and, in the first instance, whether they fall within the definition of a “worker” under Section 2(zr) of the Industrial Relations Code, 2020. Section 2(q) of the Code brings within the fold of an “industrial dispute” a dispute between an employer and workers connected with employment or the terms and conditions of employment, while Section 53 provides the statutory mechanism for conciliation and adjudication of such disputes before the competent Tribunal. 4. The Supreme Court has also emphasised that where a dispute concerning service conditions of a workman involves questions requiring factual adjudication and an efficacious remedy is available under industrial law, recourse to the specialised statutory forum would ordinarily be appropriate. Reference may be made to U.P. State Spinning Co. Ltd. v. R.S. Pandey1 and Scooters India Ltd. v. Vijai E.V. Eldred.2 5. At this stage, Mr. Chandra Mohan Jha, counsel for the Petitioners, 1 (2005) 8 SCC 264 2 (1998) 6 SCC 549 This is a digitally signed order. The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 17/09/2026 at 12:12:16 after making some submissions, seeks leave to withdraw the present petition with liberty to avail the remedies available to the Petitioners under the Industrial Relations Code, 2020 and other applicable law. 6. The writ petition is accordingly dismissed as withdrawn, with liberty as prayed for. It is clarified that this Court has expressed no opinion either on the merits of the Petitioners’ claims or on their status. All questions, including the maintainability of the proceedings before the forum approached and the entitlement of the Petitioners to the reliefs claimed, are left open to be considered in accordance with law. 7. Pending application(s), if any, also stand disposed of. SANJEEV NARULA, J SEPTEMBER 14, 2026 as This is a digitally signed order. The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 17/09/2026 at 12:12:16