In Brief
The Supreme Court held that ad hoc payments made to employees of Fertilizer Corporation of India Limited and Hindustan Fertilizer Corporation Limited pursuant to interim court orders are not 'wages' under the Payment of Gratuity Act, 1972. The interim payments, granted while pay scale revision disputes were pending, were expressly stated as ad hoc and without prejudice to the parties' rights. When the final order went against the employees' claim, they lost the benefit of the interim relief. The Court applied the principle that interim orders cease when the ultimate outcome of litigation does not sustain them. However, no recovery was ordered from employees or families who had already received payments due to the passage of time."
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