Full Judgment
Oral:
Dharam Chand Chaudhary, J.
1. Complaint is that the transfer of the petitioner from Govt. Senior Secondary School, Seri-Banglow (Mandi) to Govt. Senior Secondary School, Bagshar (Mandi), vide office order dated 21.9.2012 (Annexure P-2) impugned in the present petition, well before completion of normal tenure, is illegal, arbitrary and against the principles of natural justice.
2. Admittedly, the petitioner is working as a Lecturer (school cadre) in History. In October, 2010, vide order Annexure P-1, he was transferred and posted as such at the present place of his posting i.e. Govt. Senior Secondary 1 Whether reporters of Local Papers may be allowed to see the judgment? School, Seri-Banglow in District Mandi. He, however, subsequently was transferred and posted vide impugned order dated 21.9.2012, Annexure P-2, to Govt. Senior Secondary School, Bagshar (Mandi) vice 3rd respondent. It is this order which he has challenged before this Court in the present writ petition on the grounds, inter alia, that he has not been allowed to complete normal stay of 3-5 years and has been transferred from the present place of his posting merely to accommodate the 3rd respondent, who politically is a heavy weight. Also that he met with an accident on 11.9.2012 and is under treatment in Indira Gandhi Medical College/Hospital, Shimla.
3. The 3rd respondent though is duly served, however, opted not to put in appearance.
4. The stand of the respondent-State, as emerges from the reply filed in this writ petition, in a nutshell, is that the cadre of Lecturers is a State Cadre and as such the respondent-Department can transfer the petitioner to any place in the State in the exigency of services and also in the public interest. The petitioner has rightly been transferred after obtaining the approval of the competent authority and as such his transfer is neither unconstitutional nor can he be said to be aggrieved thereby in any manner whatsoever.
5. It is well established at this stage that transfer of an employee from one place to another is one of the service conditions of his appointment against a post and the employer, in the exigency of service and in public interest, is fully competent to transfer him from one place to another. It being an administrative action, the Courts normally should not interfere with such administrative action, unless and until it is established that such transfer is the result of colourable exercise of powers and the employee has been transferred for extraneous consideration and with malafide intention to harass him.
6. Having gone through the record and taking into consideration the submissions made on behalf of the petitioner and also the respondent-State, no case of any arbitrary exercise of power, except for the bald assertion that the petitioner has been transferred to accommodate the 3rd respondent, is found to be made out. Nothing more to substantiate such contention has come on record.
7. The further case, as set out in the writ petition that the petitioner has not been allowed to complete normal tenure of 3-5 years, is also without any substance for the reason that as per policy for transfer of teachers in the Education Department, circulated vide letter No. EDN-B-B- (7)3/2010 dated 8.12.2010, the normal stay of a teacher at one place will be 3 academic years, however, it depends on the performance of the teacher and administrative requirement. A Govt. employee cannot claim his transfer or posting at a particular place of his choice as a matter of right and it is the prerogative of the respondent-State to transfer him anywhere in the State keeping in view the administrative convenience or exigency of service. Therefore, when the respondent-Department has transferred the petitioner from Govt. Senior Secondary School, Seri-Banglow (Mandi) to Govt. Senior Secondary School, Bagshar (Mandi) after obtaining the approval of the competent authority in the public interest, he is not justified in claiming his posting at Seri-Banglow till he completes the so-called normal stay of 3-5 years, because as per the transfer policy, the normal stay of a teacher at a particular place is 3 academic years. Otherwise also, he is working in Govt. Senior Secondary School, Seri-Banglow since October, 2010. His stay in that school, as of now, is around 2½ years. The suitable time for transfer of teachers, as per the transfer policy, is the month of April, i.e. start of new academic year. In the absence of allegation of malafide against the respondent-State and the present even being not a case of arbitrary or colourable exercise of powers, we see no reason as to why he should not be transferred from the present place of posting, particularly when his stay in that school, as of now, is around 2½ years.
8. On medical ground also, no case is found to be made out, because the OPD ticket Annexure P-3, no doubt speaks about the petitioner having met with an accident, however, no injury, serious in nature, is indicated therein. The plea in this behalf, therefore, seems to have been taken merely for rejection. We thus find no merit in this petition and the same as such deserves dismissal.
9. For all the reasons hereinabove, this petition fails and the same is accordingly dismissed. Pending application(s), if any, shall also stand disposed of.