Report No. 58
History in India
7.8. On the other hand, in India the story of the growth of trade union movement is not so deserved. It is true that, in 1918 for instance,1 the Common Law doctrine was invoked by the Madras High Court in dealing with the case of the Madras Labour Union led by B.P. Wadia which had declared a strike. But, with the passing of the Trade Unions Act in 1926, the Employees' right to form trade unions was, in substance, recognised. Several other Acts were passed later, which conferred legitimacy on the trade union movement and its activities.
1. (a) Rustamji Law of Industrial Disputes in India, (1964), p. 145.
(b) K.N. Subramania Labour Management Relations in India, 1967, pp. 37, 41, 53.
(c) National Commission on Labour Retort, (1969), p. 55, para. 6.44 and 6.45.