Your appointment letter, terms of appointment should be seen.
Even a trainee or apprentice should not be employed /kept in employment without wages.
You have posted that:
--“We are expected to meet some target production on a daily basis (for example 700 lines in a day), and if we do not meet the targets on a daily basis, we won't get the attendance.”
The work is to be obtained from market by employer and assigned to employee.
If you are permanent employee in your kind of arrangement of employment, you present everyday until or unless employer has asked you to mark online attendance.
It is felt that if you hold your ground well employer can not declare you absent, and ineligible for salary.
As far as assignment and completion of work is concerned you must be having the full record of work assigned to you, work done by you, and that should suffice.
If employer has issued any instruction that on day of no work assigned to be completed from home, you have to be at………office at address………and mark attendance in register/online……it shall be difficult to state that you were not eligible for salary.
--“I was called for the meeting over phone by the HR during first week of September 2012. I attended the meeting on 5/9/2012 and spoke to the management consisting of my production manager, HR rep, and a senior production manager. They convinced me to withdraw my resignation and assured me that such situations will not come up again and they put me into a different team.”
You could have submitted the minutes and statement of HR and all. Company and its HR has accepted its fault as per notes posted by you.
--“In the minutes of the meeting, they have mentioned theri happiness to retain me. I am having copies of all the emails. “
This amounts to non acceptance of resignation and to keep you in employment.
--“I just want to know if I take legal assistance to sort this issues out, how much time it would take and will it affect settlement of my provident fund.”
PF is covered under social security and once PF number has been issued to you employer is duty bound to deposit the contribution in time. Employer has no control on the funds. Employers are known to play tactics e.g. delay to attest and submit forms for transfer/withdraw from PF, with the concerned o/o of APFC. However employer has to submit forms within 5 days, and PF office can impose penalties. You may submit PF forms which you can obtain from local o/o of APFC, by redg. post to appointing authority and request that acknowledgment in original issued by PF office should be supplied to you by redg. post only.
It is difficult to say how much time it shall take.
If the company is sensible it would not like to be penalized and may pay on your representations only. It shall be appropriate to show all documents, give inputs in person and seek advice of elders in the family, competent and experienced well wishers, lawyer/law firm to structure and draft your representation to suit you in the long run.
Company may yield on getting a legal notice.
Company may yield on receiving the demand notice, during conciliation proceedings.
Or the matter may be referred to court.
Your lawyer shall be able to advice you better.
After having prepared all notes and having submitted the representation you may meet the labor Inspector in person. Company may not like to offend the law and be penalized and earn bad publicity.
