No government servant has a legal right to be posted forever at any one particular place or at a place of his choice

Even if the order, impugned in the Writ Petition, is, as held by the learned Single Judge, a transfer order, it is well settled that transfer from one place to another is an incidence of service, and is made in the exigencies of administration. No person can claim that he should not be transferred from one place to another. No government servant has a legal right to be posted forever at any one particular place or at a place of his choice. (Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan v. Damodar Prasad Pandey (2004) 12 SCC 299; Major General J.K. Bansal v. Union of India (2005) 7 SCC 227 ; Union of India v. Janardhan Debanath (2004) 4 SCC 245; National Hydroelectric Power Corpn. Ltd. v. Shri Bhagwan (2001) 8 SCC 574). Transfer of an employee, appointed to a particular cadre of transferable posts, is an incident of service and is made in administrative exigencies. No government servant has neither a legal right to be posted at any particular place nor any choice in the matter. Transfer is necessary in public interest and efficiency in public administration, and is, normally, not to be interfered with by Courts/Tribunals. (Gujarat Electricity Board v. Atmaram Sungomal Poshani (1989) 2 SCC 602; Public Services Tribunal Bar Association v. State of U.P (2003) 4 SCC 104).[Para No.7]

A government servant holding a transferable post has no vested right to remain posted at one place, and is liable to be transferred from one place to the other. Transfer orders, issued by the competent authority, do not violate any of his legal rights. (Shilpi Bose v. State of Bihar 1991 Supp (2) SCC 659; Major General J.K. Bansal (2005) 7 SCC 227). A person holding a transferable post, unless specifically provided in his service conditions, has no choice in the matter of posting. (Rajendra Ch. Bhattacharjee (1995) 2 SCC 532). Unless there is a term to the contrary in the contract of service, a transfer order is a normal incidence of service. (Pearlite Liners (P) Ltd. v. Manorama Sirsi (2004) 3 SCC 172). In a transferable post, an order of transfer is a normal consequence and personal difficulties are matters for consideration of the department, and not the Court. (Rajendra Roy (1993) 1 SCC 148).[Para No.9]

Uttarakhand High Court

Kuldeep Singh Panwar

Vs.

State Of Uttarakhand 

Decided on 10/06/2020