“The assessment of worth of an employee must be left to the bonafide decision of the employer” ruled the Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh High Court, adding that “courts cannot interfere with the orders of transfer and substitute their own decision for that of the management.”
As per the HC, matters of transfer and posting are “incidents of service” and no employee can claim a right to any particular post.
This observation was made by the court when two petitions were filed by an employee who challenged a transfer order and reversion from a higher post.
Justice Javed Iqbal Wani stated that it is not possible for any court to meddle with the transfer orders given by the management, which decides on an employee’s worth and suitability for a specific post/role only after considering various important factors, including the demands of administration.
The petitioner had been appointed as khilawarzi inspector in 1992, and then temporarily posted as the executive officer in the Municipal Committee, Thanamandi, in November 2022. The fact that this was a temporary arrangement was clearly conveyed and therefore it was clarified that the arrangement did not make him eligible for any promotion or regular posting.
When the petitioner was asked to return to his old post, he accused his employer of a breach of transfer policies. Then came another order assigning the charge of the executive officer to the tehsildar, which added to the petitioner’s disappointment. The petitioner maintained that it was unfair and unjust of the administration to revert him to the old post and that the reversion was in violation of transfer policies.
As per the employer, however, his posting as executive officer was temporary and was done in an emergency situation; and that he was reverted only after his performance was evaluated. He was neither experienced nor qualified nor eligible for the post of executive officer as per the Jammu and Kashmir Urban Local Bodies Service Recruitment Rules, 2008.
The Court clarified that government servants do not possess a legal right to be posted at a particular location or post; that these decisions can only be made by the employer. Courts can interfere in such matters only if there are legal violations or some proven malafide intentions.
