ISLAM UDDIN LASKAR Vs. STATE OF ASSAM

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The legality of the order dated 18.3.2014 issued by the Director of Medical Education, Assam (the respondent No. 2) transferring the petitioner as Stenographer to Gauhati Medical College Hospital and placing him in the establishment of Superintendent, GHCH, Guwahati, is called into question in this writ petition. The facts of the case, as pleaded by the petitioner, may be briefly adverted to at the outset. Pursuant to the office order dated 28.2.2014, a medical examination section was constituted in the Office of the Director of Medical Education, Assam to monitor and implement Under-Graduate and Post-Graduate teaching, internal evaluation of students, etc. The petitioner along with three others was thereafter placed full time in the Medical College Section: he was given a seat in the Section and relieved of all other duties and assignments given to him earlier to enable him to work full time. The petitioner thereafter started working in the Medical Examination section in the Office of the respondent No. 2 with sincerity and utmost dedication. However, much to his surprise and all of a sudden, the impugned order was issued when he has not even completed two months in his current place of posting. Contending that the impugned order is mala fide, punitive and in violation of the model code of conduct imposed by the Election Commission and that there is no post of Stenographer at Gauhati Medical College Hospital, he is filing this writ petition for quashing the same.

(2.) Opposing the writ petition, the respondent authorities filed their affidavit-in-opposition through the Officer on Special Duty in the Directorate of Medical Education. The contention of the answering respondent is that the transfer is not punitive but is a usual transfer order which has been made at the request of the Superintendent of the Gauhati Medical College Hospital, Guwahati to assist him in some important works. It is pointed out by the answering respondent that the petitioner has been continuously absent from duty ever since the issue of the impugned transfer order. It is also pointed by the answering respondent that on the basis of the complaint received from one Sri Sunil Chandra Das, the Minister for Health and Family Welfare Department instructed the Directorate to launch urgent enquiry in connection therewith. In his complaint, the said Sunil Chandra Das alleged that he paid Rs. 1,50,000/- to the petitioner in lieu of one MBBS seat for his son, but he demanded another Rs. 1,50,000/- from him (complainant). The enquiry was conducted by two officers of the Directorate, namely, Prof. K.L. Talukdar, OSD and Dr. A.K. Sarma, Deputy DME, Assam. In the course of enquiry, some documents suggestive of illegal transaction of money between the petitioner and the complainant were found. The report of the enquiry officers is still under consideration by the DME, Assam for taking disciplinary action against the petitioner.

(3.) It is, however, disputed that he was transferred because of the complaint lodged against him. It is pointed out by the answering respondent that the petitioner was transferred to Gauhati Medical College Hospital, Guwahati which falls within the jurisdiction of the Directorate of Medical Education and that both the Directorate and the GMCH are located within a distance of nearly 4 km within the city of Guwahati. There was no violation of Model Code of Conduct: in any case, the Model Code has been lifted on 2.5.2014. The petitioner was transferred in public interest and due to administrative exigency, which cannot be construed to-be punitive in nature. These are the principal contentions of the State-respondents in defending the impugned transfer order.