G BABU Vs. CHIEF ENGINEER PS AND GL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) PETITIONER and the third respondent are Technical Assistants under the Kerala Water Authority. The former was working in Trivandrum for some considerable time and the latter at Alwaye for over three years. Both had rendered sufficiently long period of service at the respective stations and were due for transfer. In Ext. P1 order dated 15th March, 1989, petitioner was transferred to the World Bank Project Division, Alwaye, in the place of the third respondent, who was transferred from Alwaye to Public Health Division, Perumbavoor. Petitioner was relieved from Trivandrum pursuant to that order and he joined duty at Alwaye on 27th March, 1989. The third respondent joined duty at Perumbavoor.

(2.) THE Chief Engineer of the Water Authority passed a further order on 20th July, 1989, whereby the petitioner was transferred from Alwaye and was posted as Assistant Executive Engineer in the office of the Chief Engineer, Cochin. The 3rd respondent was transferred back from Perumbavoor to Alwaye replacing the petitioner. It is petitioner's submission that third respondent obtained Ext. P2 order due entirely to the influence of extraneous consideration and because she could successfully prevail upon the authorities to post her back to Alwaye in cancellation of Ext. P1 order. It is also the case of the petitioner that in passing Ext. P2 order, the claims of the petitioner for retention at Alwaye for a reasonable period was not considered by respondent 1. He therefore submits that Ext. P2 order transferring him from Alwaye in cancellation of Ext. P1 order is arbitrary and discriminatory. He therefore seeks the issue of a writ of certiorari to quash Ext. P2 order. My learned brother, Viswanatha Iyer J. , had passed an order of interim slay on C. M. P. No. 19009 of 1989 on 26th July, 1989. Petitioner filed C. M. P. No 19840 of 1989 on 2nd August, 1989 alleging that the order dated 26th July 1989 was not complied with for the reason that the third respondent had already been relieved from Perumbavoor and had taken charge at Alwaye on 24th July, 1989 before this Court issued the order dated 26th July, 1989. After hearing counsel for the petitioner, standing counsel for the Water Authority, and counsel for the third respondent, I passed an order on 3rd August, 1989, to the effect, that the order passed by this Court in C. M. P. No. 19009 of 1989 on 26th July, 1989 shall be immediately complied with. I also issued directions to the third respondent not to interfere with the petitioner's work as the Technical Assistant in the World Bank Project Division at Alwaye.

(3.) THE third respondent has filed two counter-affidavits, one in C. M. P. No. 19840 of 1989 and CM. P. No. 19841 of 1989, and the other in the Original Petition itself. In the former, she explains the circumstances in which she was relieved from Perumbavoor on 22nd July, 1989 pursuant to Ext. P1 order. That is evidenced by Exts. R3a, R3c and R3f She asserts that she was occupying the Departmental quarters at Head works Camp, Alwaye in pursuance to permission granted in that behalf under Ext. R3b. Rule 126 of the Kerala Service Rules was referred to make out that she could take only one dav as joining time and therefore she had to take/assume charge at Alwaye pursuant to Ext. P2 order on 24th July, 1989. She submits that she had worked in the Alwaye Office from 31st July, 1989 to 3rd August, 1989 and that she has not flouted any order of this Court. She submits that due to physical ailment evidenced by Exts. R3d and E, she is constrained to attend only to such work as does not involve travel and the only post in Alwaye which does not involve travel is that of Technical Assistant in the World Bank Project. She submits that it was solely due to that reason Ext. P1 order was modified in Ext. P2 order so as to post her back to Alwaye.