SUNIL KUMAR SINGH Vs. STATE OF JHARKHAND

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner has approached this Court with a prayer for quashing the order as contained in Letter No. 935 (3) dated 16.09.2016, whereby the petitioner has been transferred from the post of Civil Surgeon, Ramgarh to Medical Officer, Sub-Divisional Hospital, Barhi.

(2.) The petitioner was appointed on the post of Medical Officer, Department of Health, Govt. of Bihar on 16.03.1988 and continuing as such with all satisfaction of the respondents authorities. It is stated that first promotion was granted to the petitioner in the year 1998 on the post of Assistant Civil Surgeon. The petitioner has completed more than 27 years of his service without any complain and now he is in grade pay of Rs. 10,000/- whereas the grade pay of Medical Officer is 5400-6600/-. Vide notification no. 01-20/12, 1206 (3) dated 16.12014 issued under the signature of respondent No. 3, the petitioner has been posted at Ramgarh district as Civil Surgeon. Pursuant thereto, the petitioner joined the said post on 17.12014. But after three months, the respondent No. 4 issued an order as contained in notification No. 403 (3) dated 25.03.2015 by which, the petitioner has been demoted and transferred to the post of Medical Officer, Sub Divisional Hospital, Chakradharpur, Chaibasa from Ramgarh, which is in capricious exercise of the administrative power. Thereafter, the petitioner has challenged the same by way of filing a writ petition being W.P.(S) No. 1251/2015 before this Hon'ble High Court and the same was disposed of vide order dated 204.2015 with a direction to the respondents to consider the individual discrepancy in the matter of transfer as claimed by the petitioner within a reasonable time preferably within a period of four weeks from the date of receipt of a copy of this order and interim order has been made absolute till passing the order on the representation of the petitioner to the Department. Pursuant thereto, the petitioner filed a representation along with order dated 204.2015 before the respondent No. 2, requesting therein to quash the transfer order in pursuance of order passed by this Hon'ble Court. Thereafter, the respondents-authorities vide letter No. 715 (3) dated 05.06.2015 passed a reasoned order rejecting the representation of the petitioner and earlier order as contained in notification no. 403 (3) dated 25.03.2015 has been confirmed and the petitioner is further directed to join on new place of posting with a direction to the Regional Deputy Director (Health Services), North Chotanagpur Division, Hazaribagh to relieve the petitioner as per rule as soon as possible.

(3.) The petitioner again filed a writ petition being W.P.(S) No. 2464/2015, challenging the order as contained in letter No. 715 (3) dated 05.06.2015. During the pendency of said writ petition, the respondents vide notification No. 825 (3) dated 30.06.2015 issued a transfer order by which other similarly situated persons, who have also challenged the earlier notification dated 25.02015, have been transferred to their original place of posting. However, the said writ petition has been dismissed vide order dated 22.07.2015. Aggrieved by the order dated 22.07.2015, passed in W.P.(S) No. 2464/2015, the petitioner preferred a LPA being LPA No. 403/2015 and the same was allowed and disposed of vide order 14.02016 with a specific direction to the respondents that the aspects. With regard to length of the services of the petitioner, pay band and whether any other officer, who is working as Civil Surgeon at Chakradharpur, Chaibasa is falling from the same pay band as of the petitioner or not, needs to be reconsidered by the respondents-authorities as as to come to a conclusion that it would be in the fitness of the entire situation and other attending circumstances to transfer the petitioner as Medical Officer, Sub-Divisional Hospital, Chakradharpur, Chaibasa or to continue him as Civil Surgeon, Ramgarh, where he is presently posted and working or in the alternative, he is to be posted at some other particular place and to take a decision in this regard and until then the impugned order shall not be given effect. Thereafter, all of a sudden, the petitioner came to know that he has been transferred from the post of Civil Surgeon, Ramgarh to Medical Officer, Divisional Hospital, Barhi, Hazaribagh vide notification No. 294 (3) dated 18.02016 issued under the signature of the respondents. Thereafter, he preferred a Contempt Petition being Contempt case (Civil) No. 213 of 2016, the same was dropped with a liberty to challenge the reasoned order dated 31.02016, if he so likes, in accordance with law.