Firm says it has no cash to pay staff

The Khataus who own Carona Shoe Company have made an application to the Bombay high court, claiming they have no money to pay off their 90 workers who won a cheque-bounce case against them.

The former employees who were lured into a voluntary retirement scheme in 1996 by which the company had agreed to give a lump sum amount of Rs1.5 lakh have been trying to make ends meet after the cheques given to them bounced.

A special magistrate Chitra Hankare on September 4 sentenced the six accused to six months simple imprisonment and issued a fine of Rs3 lakh severally or jointly in default of which they would have to suffer three months each. Of the fine amount, Rs2.9 lakh should be paid as compensation to the 90
workers.

The sessions court on November 4 ordered to suspend the sentence only if 25% of the fine amount is deposited. The accused moved the Bombay high court, which has given a date on April 7, 2010.

“They can move three higher courts and stall our payment. I don’t understand how the high court can give them six months when we are suffering,” said a Carona employee Nilkant Jadhav, 65.

The convicts include Anil Khatau, Mahendra Khatau and five others. Mahendra Khatau now runs Indokem Limited that deals in textile dyes and has branches in Chennai and Sharjah.