M. GEETA Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) PETITIONER has filed the present petition under Article 227 of the Constitution of Indian challenging the order dated 28 -11 -2006 passed by the Central Administrative Tribunal, Jabalpur, in O.A. No. 256/05, whereby the Tribunal dismiss the petition of the petitioner regarding the allocation of the petitioner to the State of Chhattisgarh and also challenging the order dated 23 -2 -2005 by which representation for reconsideration of allocation of her cadre to the State of Chhattisgarh from the State of Madhya Pradesh was rejected. The aforesaid order of rejection dated 23 -2 -2005 was challenged in the aforesaid O.A. No. 256/05.

(2.) THE facts of the case are that the applicant is an IAS Officer of M.P. Cadre and is presently posted as Additional Commissioner, Gwalior in Chambal Division. On formation of the newly created State of Chhattisgarh w.e.f. 1 -11 -2000, the petitioner amongst others was allocated to the IAS Cadre of Chhattisgarh vide notification dated 31 -10 -2000. Against the aforesaid allocation she filed O.A. No. 1031/2000 before the Tribunal. Since no interim relief was granted in her favour, she filed Writ Petition No. 7154/2000 in the High Court of Judicature at Jabalpur and an interim order dated 5 -1 -2001 was passed in her favour looking to her personal difficulties as she was pregnant at that time. O.A. No. 1031/2000 was finally disposed of on 11 -5 - 2004 in terms of the order passed by the High Court on 15 -9 -2003 in W.P. No. 21562/03 and in pursuance of the aforesaid order the petitioner made a representation to the respondent No. 1 Central Govt. on 23 -8 -2004 requesting for retention of Madhya Pradesh Cadre on the ground that her husband is a bank officer was posted there. The representation rejected by the respondents vide order dated 23 -2 -2005 on the ground that the petitioner cannot claim allocation to a particular cadre as a matter of right and vide order dated 9 -3 -2005, the petitioner was directed to be relieved. She again challenged the aforesaid order in O.A. No. 256/05.

(3.) IN the writ petition before this Court, the petitioner submitted that the order dated 23 -2 -2005 under challenge before the CAT was passed by the Government of India without considering the office memorandum No. 3486, dated 3 -4 -1986, which clearly provided that the objective of issuing the guidelines by way of office memorandum is to ensure that the husband and wife are, as far as possible and within the constraints of administrative convenience, posted at the same station. The said policy was further reiterated by another office memorandum dated 12 -6 -1997, in which it was further clarified that even cases where only wife is a Government servant, the concession elaborated in this O.M. would be admissible to the Government servant and these policies are having binding effect.