In Brief
Chemical Mazdoor Panchayat challenged the High Court's reversal of concurrent findings favoring contract workers' wage parity. The High Court had rejected the worker's testimony solely because only one worker testified and drew distinctions based on comparison to Five Star Hotel employees and minor task differences. The Supreme Court held that witness number is immaterial; evidentiary value and cross-examination matter. It ruled that such discriminatory comparisons violate equal rights, and Rule 25(2)(v)(a) of the Contract Labour Rules protects wage parity regardless of recruitment source. The Court set aside the High Court's order and remanded for fresh consideration respecting the statutory protection's true spirit, within four months.
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