IN THE HIGH COURT OF JHARKHAND AT RANCHI.
W.P. (S) No. 1328 of 2008
...
Sudhir Kumar Singh ... Petitioner
-V e r s u s-
The State of Jharkhand & others ... Respondents
...
CORAM: - HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE D.G.R. PATNAIK.
...
For the Petitioner : - Mr. Prashant Pallav, Advocate
For the Respondents : - Mr. Arbinda Kr. Mehta,
J.C. to G.P.-I.
...
C.A.V. on 05.01.2009 Pronounced on: 21/01/2009
6 / 21.01.2009
Challenge in this writ application is to the order dated
28.02.2008 vide Memo No. 54/V, Mohanpur issued from the office of
the Commissioner, Santhal Pargana, Dumka whereby the petitioner
has been transferred from Mohanpur Child Development Project
Office, District-Deoghar to the Child Development Project Office,
Jama, District – Dumka.
2. The petitioner was appointed as Driver in the Department of
Social Welfare, Deoghar. Thereafter by the order of the Director,
Social Welfare Department dated 22.02.2006 he was transferred from
the office of the Child Development Project Officer, Mohanpur,
District Deoghar to Child Development Project Office, Berhat where
he joined on 28.02.2006. Again by the order of the Commissioner,
Santhal Pargana, Dumka he was transferred from Berhat to the
Office of the Child Development Project Officer, Paljori on
04.12.2006 where he joined on 06.12.2006. By a further order of his
transfer passed by the Commissioner, Santhal Pargana, Dumka
dated 27.04.2007 he was transferred from Paljori to the office of
Child Development Project Officer, Taljhari in the district of
Deoghar in a purported vacant post. In compliance with the order,
the petitioner joined his post in the office of Child Development
Project Officer, Taljhari on 13.05.2007. However, in spite of
submitting his joining letter on 13.05.2007, the Child Development
Project Officer sent his services back to the office of Commissioner,
Santhal Pargana, Dumka and consequently he joined the office of the
Commissioner, Santhal Pargana, Dumka on 14.05.2007.
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By yet another order dated 06.08.2007 of the Regional
Development Commissioner, Dumka he was again transferred to the
office of Child Development Project Officer, Mohanpur on
07.08.2007.
The petitioner’s grievance is that besides being subjected to as
many as six transfers during a period of two years, he has not been
paid his salary since the month of December, 2005.
The petitioner filed several representations demanding
payment of his salary and ultimately on considering his
representation, the Commissioner, Dumka vide his letter dated
10.10.2007 directed the C.D.P.O., Mohanpur to pay the entire arrears
of salary to the petitioner including salary for the period during
which the petitioner was kept waiting for his posting.
When despite such direction of the Commissioner, the
petitioner was not paid his salary, he filed a writ petition before this
Court vide W.P.(S) No. 946 of 2008 praying for a direction to the
respondent authorities to pay the entire arrears of his salary along
with statutory interest.
On being informed about the writ petition filed by the
petitioner, the respondent authorities had again issued the
impugned order of his transfer from Mohanpur to Jama.
The petitioner has assailed the impugned order of his transfer
as being illegal, arbitrary and prompted by malafide reasons only in
order to harass the petitioner. The petitioner submits that he has
been suffering from Nephrelogical disorders and is undergoing
medical treatment and the frequent transfers have been affecting his
health.
3. A counter affidavit has been filed on behalf of the
respondents. It is sought to be explained that the petitioner was
appointed as Jeep Driver by the Department of Social Welfare and
he joined in the office of Child Development Project Officer,
Mohanpur on 07.10.1987 where he remained continuously for 17
years in service. The post of Driver is transferable from one district
to other by the order of the Commissioner. Several female
employees of the Child Development Project Officer, Mohanpur had
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made serious allegations of petitioner’s ill-behaviour. He was
therefore transferred from Mohanpur to Paljori within the district of
Deoghar on administrative grounds on 13.09.2004. Two years later,
by order dated 22.02.2006 he was transferred from Mohanpur
district Deoghar to the Child Development Project Office, Berhat in
the district of Sahebganj on administrative grounds. Although he
joined at Berhat but he remained absent from duty from 01.04.2006
to 04.12.2006 without prior permission from the competent
authority. Thereafter he was transferred from Berhat to Palajori by
order dated 04.12.2006 issued by the Commissioner, Dumka where
he joined on 06.12.2006. However, since the post of Jeep Driver of
Child Development Project, Palajori was abolished according to the
new staffing pattern, it was not possible to make payment of his
salary from Palajori. As such on the recommendation of the Deputy
Development Commissioner, Deoghar, the petitioner was again
transferred from Palajori to Taljhari in the district of Sahebganj on
the sanctioned post of Jeep Driver in the office of Child
Development Project Officer, Taljhari. However, since the post was
not vacant on account of another Jeep Driver Sammual Baxi had
already joined the post, under the orders of the Director, Social
Welfare, Jharkhand, therefore, the petitioner’s joining at Taljhari
could not be accepted and his service was returned to the office of
the Respondent No. 2. The petitioner was kept waiting for posting
from 15.05.2007 to 06.08.2007. Later, on the petitioner’s own
application, he was posted in the office of Child Development
Project Officer, Mohanpur district Deoghar by the order dated
06.08.2007 of the Regional Developmwnt Commissioner, Dumka.
Admitting the fact that the petitioner was again transferred
from Mohanpur to Jama in the district of Dumka, it is explained that
such transfer was made on administrative grunds on 08.02.2008
along with other employees under the recommendation of the
Divisional Establishment Committee. After issuance of the order of
his transfer from Mohanpur to Jama, the petitioner was relieved
from his duty from the office of Child Development Project Officer,
Mohanpur to enable him to join at Jama.
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The stand taken by the respondent is that the petitioner has
not challenged the order of his transfer dated 08.02.2008 by which he
was transferred from Mohanpur to Jama. The impugned Annexure-5
dated 28.02.2008 is only a consequential order by which the
petitioner has been relieved by the Respondent No. 4 from
Mohanpur to enable him to join at Jama.
4. From the counter affidavit of the respondents the facts which
emerge are that admittedly the petitioner was transferred from one
place to another within short intervals. However, the circumstances
under which these transfer orders were passed, have also been
explained. One of the circumstance being the alleged complaint
received from the female employees against the petitioner and the
other being that the sanctioned post to which the petitioner was
transferred, was not vacant and available for the petitioner’s
posting. It has also been stated that under such compulsive
circumstances the orders of the petitioner’s transfer though
frequently made, had to be taken on administrative exigencies.
It further appears that the last order of his transfer, of which
the petitioner appears to be aggrieved, is the order of his transfer
from Mohanpur to Jama by the order of the Respondent No. 2 on
08.02.2008 on the basis of the recommendation of the Divisional
Establishment Committee, the resolution of which was taken at its
meeting held on 16.01.2008. The order which is impugned in this
writ application is Memo No. 54/V/Mohanpur dated 28.02.2008
(Annexure-5), appears to be a consequential order of relieving the
petitioner from his post at Mohanpur on the basis of his transfer
order dated 08.02.2008. As rightly pointed out by the learned
counsel for the respondents, the main order dated 08.02.2008 of his
transfer has not been challenged by the petitioner and as such his
challenge to the consequential order (Annexure-5) would be of no
relevance.
Furthermore, except stating his presumption that the order of
relieving him from his post at Mohanpur was on account of the
grudge of the authorities due to the writ application filed by him
demanding payment of his salary, the petitioner has not pointed out
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any such circumstance which could demonstrate that the respondent
authorities were impelled by any mala-fide motives in passing the
orders of the petitioner’s transfer. The last order of his transfer
against which the petitioner appears to be aggrieved has been
passed by the Divisional Establishment Committee by way of a
general transfer of not only the petitioner but several other
employees. The mere fact that such transfer in respect of the
petitioner came to be effected within a short interval after his earlier
transfer, in itself cannot be considered as illegal and arbitrary actions
on the part of the respondents.
It is true that under the policy of procedure regarding transfer
and posting of Government Servants, the general policy stipulates
that the duration of posting on any post and at any place will be
generally for a period of three years but the Rule also provides that
in special circumstances like death, illness, vacancy or any
administrative reasons, transfer and posting could be made at any
other time.
5. As noted above, the transfer of the petitioner was made
entirely on administrative exigencies that too pursuant to the
recommendation of the Divisional Establishment Committee. There
being no circumstance to indicate any mala-fide or arbitrariness on
the part of the respondents and the order impugned in this case
being only a consequential order made pursuant to the petitioner’s
order of transfer, I find no merit in this application. Accordingly,
this writ application is dismissed.
(D.G.R. Patnaik, J.)
Birendra/A.F.R.