Government servants have no vested right to remain posted at a place of their choice, and interference with transfer orders should be limited to cases of mala fides or violation of specific provisions.

JUDGMENT

1. This writ petition has been filed by the petitioner challenging the transfer order dated 28.08.2022 passed by the respondents as well as the order dated 30.09.2022 passed by the Rajasthan Civil Services Appellate Tribunal, Jaipur (hereinafter to be referred as 'Tribunal') whereby the appeal filed by the petitioner against the transfer order dated 28.08.2022 has been dismissed.

2. Brief facts of the case are that the petitioner who is Senior Teacher was transferred from Government Senior Secondary School Gangwara, Sawai Madhopur to Government Upper Primary School, Chorpura, Dholpur vide order dated 28.08.2022. Being aggrieved by the said order, the petitioner filed an appeal No.3797/2022 before the Tribunal which was dismissed by the tribunal vide order dated 30.09.2022. Hence, this writ petition has been filed by the petitioner challenging the order dated 30.09.2022 passed by the tribunal as well as the transfer order dated 28.08.2022.

3. Counsel for the petitioner submits that the petitioner is suffering from Heart disease of which he is taking regular treatment at Jaipur. Counsel further submits that the petitioner is going to retire within a period of five years. Counsel further submits that the transfer of the petitioner is in violation of the policy of the respondents and there was no administrative exigency to transfer the petitioner and he has been transferred in mala-fide manner.

4. Heard counsel for the petitioner and perused the record. The Hon'ble Supreme Court in the matter of Union of India and Anr. v. Deepak Niranjan Pandit and Anr. reported in (2020) 3 Supreme Court Cases 404 in para Nos. 3 and 4 has held as under:-

"3.The High Court, in interfering with the order of transfer, has relied on two circumstances. Firstly, the High Court has noted that as a result of the stay on the order of transfer, the headquarters of the respondent will remain at Mumbai and even if he is to be suspended, his headquarters will continue to remain at Mumbai. The second reason, which was weighed with the High Court, is that the spouse of the respondent suffers from a cardiac ailment and is obtaining medical treatment in Mumbai. In our view, neither of these reasons can furnish a valid justification for the High Court to take recourse to its extraordinary jurisdiction under Article 226 of the Constitution in passing an order of injunction of this nature. Significantly, the High Court has not even found a prima facie case to the effect that the order of transfer was either mala fide or in breach of law. The High Court could not have dictated to the employer as to where the respondent should be posted during the period of suspension. Individual hardships are matters for the Union of India, as an employer, to take a dispassionate view.

4.However, we are categorically of the view that the impugned order of the High Court interfering with the order of transfer was in excess of jurisdiction and an improper exercise of judicial power. We are constrained to observe that the impugned order has been passed in breach of the settled principles and precedents which have consistently been enunciated and followed by this Court. The manner in which judicial power has been exercised by the High Court to stall a lawful order of transfer is disquieting. We express our disapproval".

5. The Hon'ble Supreme Court in the matter of 'Rajendra Singh & Ors. v. State of Uttar Pradesh & Ors. reported in (2009) 15 Supreme Court Cases 178, where in para Nos. 8, 9 & 10, it has been held as under:-

"8. A Government Servant has no vested right to remain posted at a place of his choice nor can he insist that he must be posted at one place or the other. He is liable to be transferred in the administrative exigencies from one place to the other. Transfer of an employee is not only an incident inherent in the terms of appointment but also implicit as an essential condition of service in the absence of any specific indication to the contrary. No Government can function