' The decision, dated 26th September. 1982 passed by the learned Presiding Officer, Punjab Labour Court No, 5, Faisalabad in appellate jurisdiction has been challenged in this revision.
2. On account of abolition of some posts, the petitioners were reverted. They challenged the order before the Authority under the Payment of Wages Act. The petition was accepted but in appeal it was rejected on the ground that the order of reversion had not been challenged in the Labour Court and that the wages were not deducted but were ordered to be adjusted.
3. It has been argued by Mr. Nazir Ahmad Naz, the learned representative of the petitioners, that since no certificate of the deposit of the deducted amount was filed in the learned lower appellate Court, the very appeal was incompetent. This is correct that without the deposit of the deducted amount, no appeal against the order of the Authority lies but the present case is quite different in its nature. No deduction was made so there were no deducted wages which the respondent had to deposit. Amir Mukhtar, petitioner, stated clearly in cross-examination that since their pay was not decreased, therefore, they A did not prefer any appeal. Since the wages were not decreased, so no question of deduction arises. The appeal before the learned lower appellate Court was, therefore competent.
4. Admittedly, the Authority under the Payment of Wages Act has jurisdiction where wages have been illegally deducted or their payment delayed. Since the petitioners had been reverted, so even if their pay had been decreased, it could have been said that there was any illegal deduction. The Authority has no jurisdiction to go behind an order of reversion. Such an order can be challenged in the Labour Court if the aggrieved persons are workmen. If the order of reversion had been got set aside and yet deduction had been made, of course, the Authority would have jurisdiction. In the present case neither any deduction had been made, nor any deduction was illegal. The learned lower appellate Court, therefore, rightly set aside the order of the learned Authority.
5. As a result, the revision is dismissed.