NEW DELHI: The 41-member Ludhiana-based Hand Tools Association on Thursday said it has moved the Supreme Court challenging the validity of the centre’s order directing all employers to pay full wages to workers without any deduction during the lockdown period.It said the government order suffers from “gross arbitrariness, irrationality and hostile discrimination, and liable to be struck down for being unconstitutional”.On March 29, the Ministry of Home Affairs directed “all employers” to pay wages to their workers, without any deduction, for the period of the lockdown, under Section 10(2)(I) of the Disaster Management Act and warned that noncompliance would lead to necessary action under the Act.Hand Tools Association President Subhash Chander Ralhan said due to the lockdown amid the Covid-19 outbreak, industries are completely closed since March 25 and no work is happening.“We will not be able to pay the salaries for April. Due to the closure, we are not able to export goods or sell in the domestic market,” said Ralhan. The association members are micro, small and medium enterprises.The association has approached the Supreme Court under Article 32 of the Constitution challenging the validity and vires of section 10(2)(l) of Disaster Management Act, 2005 and to set aside the March 29 order.It has contended that the Disaster Management Act, 2005 does not empower the centre to direct the private establishments to pay full wages to its workers during the lockdown.“Government Order dated March 29, is in violation of the Industrial Disputes Act, 1948, which provides for payment of 50% wages under natural calamity. The government issued the order in undue haste and without considering financial ability of private establishments to bear the burden of full wages during the period of lockdown,” Ralhan said.He argued that “hundreds of crore of unclaimed provident fund and Employees State Insurance Corporation contribution lies in banks attracting interest”. Hence, the direction to private establishments to pay full wages is “completely arbitrary and unreasonable”.As per the association’s statement, government order violates Article 14,19 and 300A of the Constitution and does not provide any clarification in respect of its applicability to workman class or to all employees of all private establishments, otherwise, this will have grave financial implications on all private establishments.