- 1 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:4266-DB WA No. 1467 of 2024 C/W WA No. 1457 of 2024 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 27TH DAY OF JANUARY, 2026 PRESENT THE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE D K SINGH AND THE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE S RACHAIAH WRIT APPEAL NO. 1467 OF 2024 (L-MW) C/W WRIT APPEAL NO. 1457 OF 2024 (L-MW) IN WA No. 1467/2024 BETWEEN: 1. SHIVAMOGGA CITY CORPORATION REPRESENTED BY ITS COMMISSIONER, SHIVAMOGGA-577 201. 2. ASSISTANT EXECUTIVE ENGINEER SHIVAMOGGA CITY CORPORATION, SHIVAMOGGA-577 201. …APPELLANTS (BY SRI. A.V. GANGADHARAPPA, ADVOCATE (P/H)) AND: 1. LABOUR INSPECTOR, 1ST CIRCLE, OFFICE OF THE DEPUTY LABOUR COMMISSIONER, SHIVAMOGGA CIRCLE, SHIVAMOGGA-577 201. 2. DEPUTY LABOUR COMMISSIONER AND AUTHORITY UNDER MINIMUM WAGES ACT, Digitally signed by NANDINI M S Location: High Court of Karnataka - 2 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:4266-DB WA No. 1467 of 2024 C/W WA No. 1457 of 2024 HASSAN REGION, HASSAN-573 201. 3. M/S. FINE SERVICES HOSPITALITY (PVT.) LTD. NO.528, 2ND MAIN ROAD, 2ND PHASE, 5TH STAGE, B.E.M.L. LAYOUT, RAJARAJESHWARINAGARA, BENGALURU-560 098. …RESPONDENTS (BY SRI. M.N. SUDEV HEGDE, AGA FOR R1 AND R2 (P/H); SRI. S. VENKATESH AITHAL, ADVOCATE FOR R3) THIS WRIT APPEAL IS FILED U/S 4 OF THE KARNATAKA HIGH COURT ACT PRAYING TO ALLOW THIS APPEALS, SET ASIDE THE ORDER DATED 09.08.2024 PASSED IN W.P.NO.1153/2024 AND BE PLEASED TO ALLOW THE WRIT PETITION AS PRAYED FOR. IN WA NO. 1457/2024 BETWEEN: SHIVAMOGGA CITY CORPORATION REPRESENTED BY ITS COMMISSIONER, SHIVAMOGGA-577 201. ...APPELLANT (BY SRI. A.V. GANGADHARAPPA, ADVOCATE (P/H)) AND: 1. LABOUR INSPECTOR, 1ST CIRCLE, OFFICE OF THE DEPUTY LABOUR COMMISSIONER, SHIVAMOGGA CIRCLE, SHIVAMOGGA -577 201. - 3 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:4266-DB WA No. 1467 of 2024 C/W WA No. 1457 of 2024 2. DEPUTY LABOUR COMMISSIONER AND AUTHORITY UNDER MINIMUM WAGES ACT, HASSAN REGION, HASSAN-573 201. 3. RAVINDRA K.M. (FATHER’S NAME NOT KNOWN TO APPELLANT) AGE: MAJOR, TOTAL SOLUTIONS, NO.131 CHANNASANDRA COLONY, UTTARAHALLI MAIN ROAD, BENGALURU-560 061. ...RESPONDENTS (BY SRI. M.N. SUDEV HEGDE, AGA FOR R1 AND R2 (P/H)) THIS WRIT APPEAL IS FILED U/S 4 OF THE KARNATAKA HIGH COURT ACT PRAYING TO ALLOW THIS APPEAL, SET ASIDE THE ORDER DATED 09/08/2024 PASSED IN WP NO.894/2024 AND BE PLEASED TO ALLOW THE WRIT PETITION AS PRAYED FOR. THESE APPEALS, COMING ON FOR PRELIMINARY HEARING, THIS DAY, JUDGMENT WAS DELIVERED THEREIN AS UNDER: CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE D K SINGH and HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE S RACHAIAH - 4 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:4266-DB WA No. 1467 of 2024 C/W WA No. 1457 of 2024 ORAL JUDGMENT (PER: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE D K SINGH) 1. The present intra-Court appeal has been filed impugning the judgment and order dated 09.08.2024 passed by the learned Single Judge in writ petition No.894/2024 connected with writ petition No.1153/2024. 2. The parties are referred to as per their ranking before the Writ Court for the sake of convenience. 3. The petitioners were employed in M/s Fine Services Hospitality (Pvt) Limited - respondent No.3 through a contract of service entered between the parties on 12.06.2015 for providing housekeeping services at private Bus stand of Shivamogga. The services were for Rs.1,07,001/- per month for a period of 5 years, which was extendable based on the performance of respondent No.3. The total contract price for period of 5 years was Rs.64,20,060/-. - 5 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:4266-DB WA No. 1467 of 2024 C/W WA No. 1457 of 2024 4. Under the terms of the contract, the service provided by respondent No.3 was to pay the personnel employed by him for providing housekeeping services at the rates, which would be notified by the employer from time to time, i.e., the petitioners herein. The personnel employed by respondent No.3 for providing the housekeeping services, were to be paid directly by respondent No.3 after deducting the statutory contribution of PF and ESI. Thus, under the contract of service entered between the petitioners and respondent No.3, it was the duty of the respondent No.3 to pay the wages as notified by the petitioners. 5. The Labour Inspector had inspected the premises of the private bus stand on 22.11.2019 and 25.12.2021 and interacted with the persons working there providing housekeeping services. These persons told the Inspector that they were not being paid the minimum wages by respondent No.3 and wages - 6 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:4266-DB WA No. 1467 of 2024 C/W WA No. 1457 of 2024 being paid to them were less than the minimum wages. The Deputy Labour Commissioner registered the cases. The petitioners were issued notice of enquiry on the allegations for non- payment of minimum wages by respondent No.3 to the personnel employed by him for providing the housekeeping services as per the contract of service. It appears, the petitioners did not participate in the enquiry being conducted by the Deputy Labour Commissioner and by orders dated 22.11.2022 and 07.07.2022, the Deputy Labour Commissioner held the petitioners as well as respondent No.3 responsible for not paying the minimum wages as per the amended provisions of Minimum Wages Act, 1923, and directed them for payment of amount of Rs.1,26,128/- and Rs.3,50,220/- respectively in respect of the two cases registered by the labour inspector within a period of 30 days from the date of the order. - 7 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:4266-DB WA No. 1467 of 2024 C/W WA No. 1457 of 2024 6. The two said orders passed by the Deputy Labour Commissioner are the subject matters of challenge in two writ petitions mentioned above. 7. The learned Single Judge after analyzing the provisions of Section 21(4) of the Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970, held that the petitioners would be liable to pay the amount that was determined by the Deputy Labour Commissioner. However, they would be entitled to recover the amount from respondent No.3. 8. Mr.Gangadharappa, learned counsel for the petitioners/Corporation submits that the petitioners are not the principal employers and therefore, provisions of Section 21(4) of the Act would not be applicable to the facts of the present case. He has further submitted that it was the sole responsibility of respondent No.3 to make payment to the workers or the personnel employed by him for providing the housekeeping services in pursuance to the contract - 8 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:4266-DB WA No. 1467 of 2024 C/W WA No. 1457 of 2024 of service referred to above and for its failure to make payment as per the provisions of the Minimum Wages Act, the liability on the petitioners – Corporation cannot be fastened. 9. We have considered the submissions. The facts are not in dispute that the housekeeping services were provided by respondent No.3 under the contract of service and therefore, under the contract of service, it is the petitioners who are the principal employers of respondent No.3 for providing services. In case, the service provider or the supplier of the labour fails to make payment as per the statutory prescription, it becomes the liability and responsibility of the employer who take the services on contract to make payment as per the statutory prescription and recover it from the contract. The safeguard as provided under sub-Section (4) of Section 21 of the Act is to ensure that the labourer or the contract - 9 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:4266-DB WA No. 1467 of 2024 C/W WA No. 1457 of 2024 labourer are paid minimum wages and they are not exploited by the contractor. 10. In the present case, the petitioners did not participate in the enquiry before the Deputy Labour Commissioner, despite notice and therefore, the Deputy Labour Commissioner after holding the enquiry in their absence has assessed the liability at Rs.1,26,128/- and Rs.3,50,220/- in two cases and has directed the petitioners and respondent No.3 to make the aforesaid payments. 11. We have considered the submissions and we do not find any merit in this appeal. Under sub-Section (4) of Section 21 of the Act, it is the responsibility of the petitioners to see that the personnel employed by the contractor are paid the minimum wages, and if the contractor fails to make the payment of minimum wages to the labourers and the workers or the personnel employed for providing the services under the service contract, the petitioners have to make - 10 - HC-KAR NC: 2026:KHC:4266-DB WA No. 1467 of 2024 C/W WA No. 1457 of 2024 good the short fall in payment and may recover the said amount from the contractor. The said liberty has already been granted by the learned Single Judge and therefore, we do not find any ground to interfere with the impugned judgment and order passed by the learned Single Judge. We therefore, dismiss these writ appeals. Sd/- (D K SINGH) JUDGE Sd/- (S RACHAIAH) JUDGE HB List No.: 1 Sl No.: 13