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1997 Supreme(AP) 86
Andhra Pradesh High Court
Judges : G.BIKSHAPATHY
N.Varado Rajula Reddy - Appellant
Versus
Government Of A.P. - Respondent
Decided On : 02-05-97
Headnote:
Constitution of India,1950 – Article,226 – Andhra Pradesh District Formation Act 7 of 1974 - Section, 3 - Rural Development - orders shifting to Headquarters - Petitioner is sitting M. L. A. from Proddutur Assembly Constituency - He submits that originally office Executive Engineer Panchayat Raj was functioning at Jammalamadugu from and there are mandals Divisional Office - Out of mandals are situate within Jammalamadugu Constituent Assembly and the rest Proddutur and Pulivendula Assembly Constituencies - It was found that location of office of Divisional Engineer Panchayat Raj was not convenience for the villagers in various mandals either from point of transport facilities distance and also in order to execute various developmental activities - Hence became necessary to shift the office from Jammalamadugu to Proddutur. Accordingly Government issued shifting Panchayat Engineering Division from Jammalamadugu to Proddutur After it was shifted, permanent building was constructed by spending While so it is case of petitioner that at the instance of sitting M. L. A. of Jammalamadugu Assembly Constituency who belongs to ruling party and who post of Minister Government issued the impugned G. O. directing -shifting of office of Executive Engineer from Proddutur to Jammalamadugu case of petitioner that ground of operation and convenience are absolutely incorrect - On other hand it will cause serious inconvenience to public –Held, Case stands on a different footing - It simple case of petitioner who is none-else-than sitting M. L. A. Assembly Constituency of Proddulur that the decision was taken purely on political considerations and no material was available before Government take such decision - It is one thing to state that Government has acted on the material available and in such a case any decision taken by Government even on insufficient material would not permissible for this Court to exercise judicial review as sufficiency or otherwise of the material before Government cannot be gone into this Court - But if there was no material whatsoever available and yet the decision was taken would be well within the powers of this Court to interfere in such matters political considerations as M. L. A. of Jammalamadugu belongs to ruling party - Be that as it may dchors the political considerations Government is required to consider matter on the basis of some material representations of political parties cannot be the sole ground to shift office but at same time the decision has to be taken keeping view various considerations including public interest file bereft of any such material whatsoever - Though court in agreement with learned Govt - Pleader that decision to shift office from one place another place is purely an administrative act but at same time when writ petitioner urged that shifting was effected mala fide and purely on political considerations became necessary to scrutinise decision - Order accordingly
( 1 ) IN this writ petition, the validity of G. O. Rt. No. 281 (981 wrongly typed as 281), Panchayat Raj Rural Development and Relief (ESTT-1) Department, dated 25-7-1996 is assailed.
( 2 ) THE petitioner is the sitting M. L. A. from Proddutur Assembly Constituency. He submits that originally the office of the Executive Engineer, Panchayat Raj was functioning at Jammalamadugu from 1984 and that there are 13 mandals under the Divisional Office. Out of 13 mandals, 4 are situate within Jammalamadugu Constituent Assembly and the rest under Proddutur and Pulivendula Assembly Constituencies. It was found that the location of the office of the Divisional Engineer, Panchayat Raj was not convenience for the villagers in various mandals either from the point of transport facilities or distance and also in order to execute various developmental activities. Hence, it became necessary to shift the office from Jammalamadugu to Proddutur. Accordingly, the Government issued G. O. Rt. No. 1372, dated 22-11-1991 shifting the Panchayat Raj Engineering Division from Jammalamadugu to Proddutur. After it was shifted, permanent building was constructed by spending Rs. 5 lakhs. While so, it is the case of the petitioner that at the instance of sitting M. L. A. of Jammalamadugu Assembly Constituency who belongs to ruling party and who held the post of Minister, the Government issued the impugned G. O. directing the-shifting of office of Executive Engineer from Proddutur to Jammalamadugu. It is the case of the petitioner that the ground of operation and convenience are absolutely incorrect. On the other hand, it will cause serious inconvenience to the public. More over, there is no pucca building at Jammalamadugu and it is functioning from a portion of the building allotted to in D. R. D. A. building. It is stated that the impugned order is passed for extraneous political consideration viz. , the petitioner (M. L. A. of Proddutur Constituency) and other M. L. A. of Pulivendula belongs to Congress Party.
( 3 ) IN the counter affidavit filed on behalf of the respondents, it is stated that the headquarters of one of the Division of Panchayat Raj Department was fixed at Jammalamadugu in G. O. Ms. No. 331, dated 2-7-1985, the Cuddapah district was divided into three divisions, one such division was Jammalamadugu. The decision of the Government to shift the Panchayat Division, Executive Engineer from Proddutur to Jammalamadugu is purely an administrative act and it is neither illegal nor irrational and this Court may not interfere by exercising the judicial review on administrative act under Art. 226 of the Constitution of India. It is also stated that the division started functioning from 3-8-1986 at Jammalamadugu. Therefore, he submits that the writ petition is liable to be dismissed.
( 4 ) THE learned counsel for the petitioner Mr. D. Sudarsana Reddy submits that while there should not be any objection for any citizen for shifting of office from one place to another place, but at the same time, the decision should not be arbitrary and tainted by extraneous considerations. It is the principal grievance that at the instance of sitting M. L. A. of Jammalamadugu, the impugned orders were passed and no other considerations such as administrative convenience etc. have been taken into account while issuing the impugned orders.
( 5 ) THE learned Govt. Pleader maintains that the shifting of a office from one place to another place is purely an administrative decision and it is outside the purview of the scrutiny by this Court. He relies on the judgment of the Supreme Court reported in J. R. Raghupathy v. State of A. P. , AIR 1988 SC 1681.
( 6 ) IT is not in dispute that earlier the headquarters of the division was located at Jammalamadugu and subsequently it was shitted to Proddutur in the year 1991. But, again in 1996 it is again shifted to its original place at Jammalamadugu by virtue of the impugned orders. It was not stated by the Government,
