The main legal point established in the judgment is that the transfer and posting of a government servant outside his parent cadre of Service or department is considered as deputation under Regulation 52-B of the CSRs and not a transfer under Rule 27 of the CCA Rules.

Ali Mohd. Magrey, J.:-

1. This Letters Patent Appeal has been preferred against the order dated 01.08.2014 passed by the learned Writ Court in CMP No. 1690/2014 accompanying the writ petition, SWP No. 1057/2014, whereby the interim order dated 28.05.2014 passed therein, staying the operation of order No. 177-HUD of 2014 dated 23.05.2014 to the extent it related to respondent No. 1 herein, has been made absolute. By the aforesaid Government Order dated 23.05.2014, the Government ordered the transfers and posting of as many as six officers of the J & K Town Planning Organization. Name of the contesting respondent herein, i.e., the writ petitioner, figured at serial No. 1 of the order and he was transferred from the position of I/C Chief Town Planner, Kashmir, and posted Chief Town Planner, Srinagar Development Authority. The order also reads that the post of Sr. Town Planner, Srinagar Development Authority, is upgraded to the level of Chief Town Planner till it is held by the respondent. The respondent challenged the order to the extent it related to him on the ground that in terms of Rule 27 of the Jammu and Kashmir Civil Services (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules, 1956 he could be transferred within the Cadre of Town Planning (Gazetted) Service and not against a post not part of the Cadre, that too in Srinagar Development Authority, which was a creation of Section 3 of the Development Act.

2. In this appeal it is stated that the issuance of said Government order was necessitated under the exigencies of public service with a view to gearing up and accomplishing the revision of Master Plans of the Cities of Srinagar, Jammu and Katra within the statutorily presented cutoff date, viz. 31.03.2015, in terms of the Jammu and Kashmir (Special Provisions) Act, 2014. The order was implemented much before the ad interim order was passed by the Court, inasmuch as proforma respondent No. 2, Shri V.K. Panth, Chief Architect had assumed the charge of the office of Chief Town Planner, Kashmir. According to the appellants, this fact was brought to the notice of the learned Writ Court, yet the learned Writ Court, without taking this vital aspect of the matter in regard, passed the impugned order dated 28.05.2014. It is further stated that the learned Writ Court erred in law in not appreciating that the order in question was a pure and simple order of transfer and posting issued by the competent authority and that the same was not open to interference by the Court in exercise of its extraordinary writ jurisdiction because a Government employee cannot choose his place of posting, nor has he any say in the matter of transfers and postings. The appellants have taken number of other grounds in the memorandum of appeal.

3. We have heard learned counsel for the parties on the merits of the main writ petition as well as this appeal, and considered the matter.

4. Admittedly, the ad interim order dated 28.05.2014 read with order dated 01.08.2014 has been passed on the sole contention of the respondent-petitioner that in terms of Rule 27 of the J&K Civil Services (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules, 1956 (hereinafter referred to as the CCA Rules) he could not be transferred to, and posted on, any post outside his cadre namely, the Town Planning (Gazetted) Service. In fact, the main thrust of the argument of learned counsel for respondent No. 1 during the course of arguments on the main petition was the very same ground.

5. It may be observed here that Rule 27 of the CCA Rules, relied upon and pressed into service on behalf of respondent, is not the only provision that governs the transfers and postings of government servants. Regulation 52-B of the Jammu and Kashmir Civil Service Regulations (CSRs), which provides for appointments by transfer on deputation, also governs the government servants. Whereas Rule 27 of the CCA Rules provides for transfers within the Cadre of a Service, Regulation 52-B of the CSRs empowers the Government to