Transfer orders must comply with statutory guidelines; violations invalidate them, emphasizing the importance of legal procedures in administrative actions.

JUDGMENT :

PER DIXIT KRISHNA SHRIPAD, J.

All these petitions, by a set of teachers, essentially seek to lay a challenge to the transfer orders. A few of the petitions involve the transfer orders that are put in challenge in the departmental appeals. Other few, call in question the letter no. SME-GHS-GHS-0125-2021 dated 13.05.2025, which provides for the MPs & MLAs recommending to the jurisdictional authorities the cases of transfer.

2. Learned advocates appearing for the petitioners made the following submissions in support of their cases:

(a) The impugned transfer orders are contrary to statutory Guidelines dated 14.05.2025, which regulates the transfer.

(b) The transfer Guidelines provides for decision making by the Committee on normative basis and that the transfer orders are vitiated because of political influence.

(c) The letter dated 13.05.2025, which enables the jurisdictional MPs & MLAs to recommend teachers for transfer, is without authority of law and otherwise also unsustainable.

(d) Some of the transfers have been effected purporting to be on the ground of request, when no request is made at all; adding insult to the injury, these transferees are denied transfer allowances.

In support of these submissions, the advocates relied upon certain rulings.

3. Learned Addl. Government Advocates-Mr. Jee & Lenka resisted the petitions mainly on the following grounds:

(a) All public servants, regardless of transfer guidelines, are liable to be transferred during their service on administrative grounds. All teachers, being public servants, cannot seek exemption from transfer.

(b) There is a provision for departmental appeal against the transfer orders and the same being efficacious, petitioners who have directly approached the Writ Court, should be relegated to the appellate authorities. Those who have already appealed, should have their petitions dismissed, pending adjudication of the said appeals.

(c) The transfer Guidelines are merely directory provisions and therefore, their violation per se would not give a choate cause of action for maintaining the Writ Petitions, especially when departmental remedy being available under the very same Guidelines.

(d) The impugned letter dated 13.05.2025 is in the nature of Executive Instructions to enable MPs & MLAs to recommend for transfer of teachers, since they know the local requirement; even otherwise, their recommendation is subject to other norms laid down in the very same letter, ultimate decision being taken by Transfer Committee.

(e) The transfers have been made essentially on the recommendation of the Transfer Committee, and that the recommendations made by MPs/MLAs are only an input, while decision making. In any event, the teachers cannot cling on to the very same schools for years and their inter-change between one school and another would serve administrative exigency.

Learned AGAs also pressed into service certain rulings in support of their stand.

4. Having heard learned counsel for the parties and having perused the petition papers, this Court is inclined to grant indulgence in the matter as under and for the following reasons:

4.1. The scope & nature of transfer Guidelines

(i) There are two sets of transfer Guidelines both dated 14.05.2025 promulgated by the State Government, and that they have been published in the Gazette Notifications. There is no dispute at the Bar that these Guidelines have been promulgated inter alia under the provisions of Sections 19 & 25 read with the Schedule to the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009. Therefore, these Guidelines are not just Executive Instructions, but do enjoy statutory force. They prescribe the mode & modalities for transfer of teachers. Where a power is given to do a certain thing in a certain way, the thing must be done in that way or not at