| Youth wins case, loses battle against hotel tycoon | | | Muhammad Mukaram
Early Times Report
Srinagar, Dec 29: Even though the court has given decision in his favour after his long legal fight against a hotel tycoon in Kashmir, justice seems far away.
For nearly ten years, Fayaz Ahmed Shah, a resident of Nishat locality in Srinagar, worked hard on minimum wages, in different capacities with Mushtaq group of Hotels, to make his ends meet. On May 23, 2005, Fayaz left his home as usual for work but when he reached the gates of recently built Grand Mumtaz hotel on Residency Road, where Fayaz worked as house-keeping incharge, he was barred to enter.
"I was aghast and absolutely shocked when the security guard stopped me at the gate. It was a moment of huge embarrassment for me," Fayaz says while recalling the day he was 'illegally' terminated. He tried to talk to the hotel manager and others about the decision, he says, but to no avail.
He went before the Industrial Tribunal cum Labour Court, Jammu and Kashmir, Srinagar where he registered the case against the business tycoon.
"I had spent nearly ten years with the organization and given my financial condition, I was so upset that I wanted to end my life but I chose not to and instead went to a consumer court," he shares.
But, even fighting legally came at a cost - hope, patience and money - which the 42 year old says he often felt short of. "I didn't lose hope and even took a bank loan to fight the case," Fayaz states adding that to run his family he put up a local medicine shop in his locality.
Fayaz started working as a sales representative with the business house, when it mostly dealed in fertilizers.
He was later, according to him, shifted to work under different profiles and finally after serving nine years, the business house had ventured in hotels. Fayaz was appointed as an in-charge for housekeeping services on a monthly remuneration of Rs 4500.
However, at the hotel, hardly ten days before his termination, the in-charge ended up in an altercation with the top management over a painting, which Fayaz claimed, was not appropriate and hurt religious sentiments of a particular community but was rebuffed harshly, according to him.
Fayaz was later charged by the management of 'grave misconduct' and terminated him, the decision which the court deemed illegal.
In a landmark decision, the court established that Fayaz was illegally terminated and directed the Hotel management to pay 50% back wages to him from the date of termination. "A move which not only brought respite to me and my family but will be instrumental in bringing justice to thousands of workmen like me in Kashmir," Fayaz points out.
The victim, however, again lost hope when he tried to negotiate with the hotel management, which recently signed Rs 1000 crore deal with international hospitality brand Carlson Rezidor, and, urged them to implement the court order but, was shown the door. He claimed that the hotel manager 'threatened' him instead. "We are above court decisions," the manager told Fayaz. |
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