Digitally signed by IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY ANANT ANANT KRISHNA CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION KRISHNA NAIK NAIK Date:

2025.11.27

10:40:38 WRIT PETITION NO. 3993 OF 2025 +0530 Vilas Baburao Dhaiygude Age - 52 yrs, Occ- Agriculture Officer Quality Control, R/at- Balupatlachi Wadi, Post- Lonand, Tal- Khandala, Dist- Satara ….Petitioner Versus

1. State of Maharashtra, Through Principle Secretary, Animal Husbandry, Dairy Development & Fisheries Department, Mantralaya, Mumbai-400032.

2. The Commissioner (Agriculture), Agriculture Commissionarate, Maharashtra State Pune

3. The Divisional Agriculture, Joint Director, Pune

4. District Superintendent Agriculture officer, Pune, Dist-Pune

5. Dhananjay Dinkar Patil Age-53 Years, Occ-Service, Residing at Sun Orbit-B-405, Suncity Road, Sinhagad Road, Pune. …Respondents Mr Sushant Prabhune, for the Petitioners.

Mr Vivek V. Salunke, for the Respondent No. 5 Mr N. C. Walimbe, Addl. GP a/w. Mr. A. A. Alaspurkar, AGP for the Respondent-State CORAM: SUMAN SHYAM &

M. M. SATHAYE, JJ.

RESERVED ON : 18^th NOVEMBER, 2025.

PRONOUNCED ON : 26^th NOVEMBER, 2025.

JUDGMENT (Per M.M. SATHAYE, J.)

1. The Petitioner is challenging the order dated 14.02.2025 passed by the Maharashtra Administrative Tribunal, Mumbai (the Tribunal) in Original Application (OA) No.1361 of 2024. By the said impugned Order, the application of present Respondent No.5 (Dhananjay Dinkar Patil) is allowed, thereby setting aside the Petitioner’s transfer order.

2. The case of the Respondent No.5 in the OA, in short, is as under. Respondent No.5 was working as Agriculture Officer, Quality Control at Solapur from March 2022 and had requested for transfer to Pune on the ground that he had family at Pune with his daughter studying in 11^th standard and his mother being unwell. He was transferred by Order dated 11.10.2024 from Solapur to Pune. Pursuant to the said transfer Order, he was relieved from Solapur on same date i.e. 11.10.2024 and he joined the office at Pune on 14.10.2024. The District Officer by a letter of same date (14.10.2024), informed the Divisional Agriculture Joint Director, Pune Division that Respondent No.5 has joined Pune office. By another Order of the same date (11.10.2024), another Officer Mr. Balu D. Bagal who was working at Pune was transferred to Solapur in the place of Respondent No.5. The said Mr. Bagal joined the office at Solapur on 15.10.2024. When Respondent No.5 had already reported at Pune office and his joining report was duly communicated to the higher authority, another transfer Order was received on email transferring the present Petitioner to Pune in the same post. This email was received from the office of Respondent No.2 i.e. the Commissioner (Agriculture) and therefore, the Petitioner was allowed to join on 15.10.2024. According to Respondent No.5, the Petitioner’s transfer order was issued subsequently but was back-dated, so as to give him undue accommodation. According to Respondent No.5, the case of the Petitioner was not even placed before the Civil Services Board, though it was mandatory to do so.

3. The Tribunal after hearing both sides, as well as after considering the stand of the government, allowed the OA thereby setting aside the Petitioner’s transfer order.

4. Learned counsel for the Petitioner submitted that there is nothing on record to indicate that his transfer order was back-dated. He submitted that the Tribunal has not considered the dispute in proper perspective. He submitted that since the government was supporting his case by taking a stand that the Petitioner’s transfer order is legal and transfer order of Respondent No.5 is treated as cancelled, there was no question of the Petitioner approaching the Tribunal. He relied upon a Government Resolution (GR) dated 11.02.2024 in support of his case. He pointed out that he had completed 3 years at his earlier posting and had applied for transfer to Pune as his first preference. He submitted that Respondent No.5 had not completed 3 yea