The court upheld the validity of an administrative transfer order, emphasizing that judicial review does not extend to mere dissatisfaction with administrative decisions unless clear illegality is demonstrated.

ORDER :

WP(MD)No.3402 of 2025 is filed against the proceedings dated 27.01.2025 issued by the first respondent wherein the petitioner has been transferred and posted as the Assistant Agricultural Officer in S.Pudur (Agricultural Business), the office of the Deputy Director, Department of Agricultural Marketing and Agriculture Business, Sivagangai District in the place of the third respondent.

WP(MD)No.4065 of 2025 is filed to forbear the respondents from disturbing the petitioner from the present place i.e Sanarpatti Block, Dindigul District.

2. The petitioner in WP(MD)No.3402 of 2024 is the third respondent in WP(MD)No.4065 of 2025. The petitioner in WP(MD)No.4065 of 2024 is the third respondent in WP(MD)No.3402 of 2025.

3. For convenience, the status of the parties in WP(MD)No.3402 of 2025 will be referred herein under:

i) The petitioner was working at Sanarpatti Block Dindigul District as the Assistant Agricultural Officer. He was transferred to S.Pudur, Sivagangai District and the third respondent, who is working at S.Pudur Sivagangai District was transferred to Sanapathi Block Dindigul District vide proceedings dated 27.01.2025 of the first respondent.

ii) The case of the petitioner is that while he was working at Vadamadurai, Dindigul District in the year 2020, he was diagnosed with heart disease and underwent Angioplasty surgery. Thereafter, on his request, he was transferred and posted at Sanapatti Block, Dindigul District vide proceedings of the first respondent dated 05.01.2022. From then, he has been working at Sanapatti, Block Dindigul District. Suddenly, the first respondent issued the impugned order dated 27.01.2025 transferring the petitioner to S.Pudur, Sivagangai District.

iii) It is the case of the petitioner that he came to understand that the third respondent has been transferred to Sanapatti Block Dindigul District and at his request for transfer the impugned order is issued. The petitioner is transferred to the work place of the third respondent. The learned counsel for the petitioner submits that the impugned transfer order is issued on the basis of an application submitted by the third respondent and the transfer order has not bene passed purely on administrative grounds. He contends that this fact only leads to the inevitable impression that the impugned order has been passed so as to do undue favour to the third respondent in the guise of administrative transfer. He further contends that the present impugned transfer order has been motivated by malice and tainted with trickery and sought to quash the same.

iv) The case of the third respondent is that he is working as the Assistant Agricultural Officer at S.Pudur Block, Sivagangai District from June 2018 to January 2025. Due to his family reasons, he applied for transfer to Dindigul District. Accordingly, the first respondent vide proceedings dated 27.01.2025 transferred the petitioner to Sanapatti Block, Dindigul District. As per the said order, he joined duty on 03.02.2025 at Sanapatti Block. Dindigul District. Because of the interim stay order passed by this Court on 05.02.2025 in WMP(MD)No.2404 of 2025, the first respondent in his letter dated 06.02.2025 has instructed the Deputy Director of Agricultural Department, Sivagangai District to permit the third respondent to re-join duty at S.Pudur Block, Sivagangai District on temporary basis. Under these circumstances, he filed a petition in WMP(MD)No.4113 of 2025 in WP(MD)No.3402 of 2025 seeking to vacate the interim stay order passed by this Court on 05.02.2025.

v)The learned counsel for the third respondent further submits that in the light of the instructions issued by the first respondent in his letter dated 06.02.2025, wherein he was instructed to re-join duty at S.Pudur Block, Sivagangai District, he filed a writ petition in WP(MD)No.4065 of 2025 for directions to forbear the official respondents from disturbing him from Sanapatti Block, Dindigul District. Accordingly, the learned counsel for the third r