' The facts briefly stated are that the appellant was an employee of the respondents. His services were terminated with effect from 3rd May, 1983. He served a grievance notice, dated 2nd May, 1983 on the respondents. His grievance having not been redressed he filed a grievance application under section 25-A, I. R.
0., 1969, against the respondents. The respondents appeared and amongst others raised the plea that the grievance notice was premature by one day. The learned Labour Court, vide its order, dated 11th December, 1983 dismissed the grievance application as non-maintainable on that sole ground. Aggrieved by the order, the appellant has come in this appeal.
2. I have perused the evidence on the record and have also heard the learned representatives for the parties, Mr. S. P. Lodhi for the appellant and Mr. Ghulam Hussain for the respondents. Mr. S. P.
Lodhi for the appellant has mainly contended that the grievance notice was not premature as though it was, dated 2nd May, 1983 was served on the respondent after the service of the appellant were terminated on 3rd May, 1983. According to him the date of the notice is immaterial and what is material as provided by section 25-A(1), I. R.
0. Is that the grievance be brought to the notice of the employer in writing within 3 months of the date on which cause of such grievance arises. On the admitted facts of the case the services of the appellant were terminated on 3rd May, 1983 and the cause of action arose to him on that date.
What I find that the appellant in his evidence has produced the grievance notice and the two postal receipts, all dated 2nd May, 1983. What I further find as pointed out by Mr. S. P. Lodhi that the postal stamps on the two receipts which pertain to the despatch of the grievance notice disclose that the grievance notice was despatched on 2nd May, 1983 by Night Post Office and in the ordinary course of business it should reach the addressee either in the afternoon of 3rd May, 1983 or thereafter depending on the efficiency of the postal process. In any case, there is no doubt that it could not reach the addressee overnight and it is certain that it must have reached the addressee not before his services were terminated, with effect from 3rd May, 1983. The presumption under section 114 of the Evidence Act is that a letter sent by post would reach the addressee within usual time but this presumption is rebuttable. The respondents by no means have made any attempt to rebut this presumption by producing any evidence to the effect that the grievance notice by post had reached them before the service of the appellant was actually terminated on 3rd May, 1983 though the entire record in that respect must be available with them. I would, therefore, find that the grievance notice reached the respondents on or after 3rd May, 1983 much after the services of the appellant were terminated, with effect from 3rd May, 1983 when the cause of action arose to him. In my view, therefore, the grievance was brought to the notice of the employer within the meaning of section 25-A(1), I. R.
0., 1969, after a cause of action arose to the appellant and not before as contended on behalf of the respondents. In my view, therefore, the grievance notice is definitely not premature. The grievance application, therefore cannot be said to be non-maintainable on that account.
3. The result is that the impugned order is set aside and the appeal is allowed. The case is sent back to the learned Second Labour Court at Karachi for its decision on merits.