JUDGMENT :

Mitali Thakuria, J.

Heard Mr. I. Choudhury, learned senior counsel, assisted by Mr. S. Biswakarma, learned counsel for the appellant. Also heard Ms. R. Basar, learned Government Advocate for the State respondent no. 1, Mr. L. Perme, learned standing counsel for the Power Department and Mr. P.K. Tiwari, learned senior counsel, assisted by Mr. K. Saxena, learned counsel for the respondent no.3. None appears on call for the respondent no.4.

2. By filing this intra court appeal, the appellant has assailed the judgment and order dated 29.07.2022 passed by the learned Single Judge of this Court in WP(C) 215(AP)/2022. The appellant is the writ petitioner and by the impugned order the said writ petition was dismissed.

3. In brief, the case of the appellant is that he is presently working as an Executive Engineer (Electrical) in the Department of Power in the State of Arunachal Pradesh. It is the admitted case of the appellant that on 04.09.2019, he was transferred and posted as Executive Engineer (Planning) in the office of the Chief Engineer (Planning), Central Electrical Zone, Itanagar. He had completed the normal tenure posting of two years on 03.09.2021. On 17.03.2022, the respondent no.3 was transferred from Roing Head Quarter to Yatdam Electrical Division and it is projected that the respondent no.3 had merely completed 9(nine) months of posting at Roing Head Quarter. It is further projected that having realized that the transfer of respondent no.3 was in violation of the Government policy of a minimum tenure of posting of two years, by another transfer order dated 28.03.2022, the appellant was transferred to Yatdam Electrical Division. The said order dated 28.03.2022 was challenged by respondent no.3 by filing WP(C) 129(AP)/2022 and this Court by judgment and order dated 26.04.2022 disposed of the writ petition by setting aside the transfer order dated 28.03.2022 by directing the Commissioner (Power) to revisit the issue of transfer of the appellant and respondent no.3 strictly in accordance with the departmental norms and Service Rules without being influenced by notes, if any, circulated by any political persons, whomsoever and it was directed that the said exercise shall be undertaken within a period of 4(four) weeks from the date of receipt of certified copy of the order. The respondent no.2 by an order dated 14.06.2022, transferred the respondent no.3 to Yatdam Electrical Division and the appellant was transferred to Pasighat.

4. The said order has been challenged by the appellant by filing WP(C) 215(AP)/2022. As indicated above, the said writ petition was dismissed by judgment and order dated 29.07.2022 and the said judgment is assailed in this intra court appeal.

5. The submissions made by the learned Senior Counsel for the appellant can be compartmentalized into three distinct grounds, viz., (1) transfer order was mala fide, (2) the circulars related to transfer has a statutory force and cannot be diluted, and (3) no reasons was assigned for the transfer of the appellant and respondent no.3.

6. In order to show that the transfer order was mala fide, it was submitted that by an order dated 09.06.2021, the appellant was transferred from Roing Electrical Division to Roing Hq. as Electrical Inspector. Therefore, it is urged that the normal period of tenure posting of respondent no.3 would have expired on 08.03.2023. However, the respondent no.4, who is holding the post of Commissioner (Power), is the classmate and close friend of the respondent no.3, had in violation of the transfer policy of the State, transferred the respondent no.3 from Roing Hq. to Yatdam Electrical Division vice Sri Gangtok Banyang by order dated 17.03.2022. The said order was issued on 19.03.2022. It may be stated that in the said transfer order dated 17.03.2022, the name of Sri Gangtok Banyang is also written as Sri Gamtok Banyang and in another office order dated 24.03.2022, his name is written as Sri Gangtong Bangyang. It is submitted that alth