1

NON-REPORTABLE IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION CIVIL APPEAL NO. 18815 OF 2017

[@ SPECIAL LEAVE PETITION (C) NOS. 12955 OF 2017] VIJAY S/O WAMANRAO KAMBLE                     Appellant (s)

                               VERSUS DNYANESHWAR MAHADEO MALI  & ORS.              Respondent(s)

J U D G M E N T

KURIAN, J. 1. Leave granted.

2. Inter-District transfer in Revenue Service in the State  of  Maharashtra  has  given  rise  to  this litigation.   Finding  that  the  transfer  of  the appellant  has  affected  the  promotion  of  people already working in the transferred district, namely Latur, the High Court intervened and set aside the transfer.

3. Aggrieved, the appellant approached this Court. It has been the contention of the appellant that by his transfer from Hingoli to Latur, nobody had been affected  since  he  belonged  to  the  Scheduled  Caste category.  It was also submitted that the transfer is made by the Government in exercise of its power under Section 4(5) of the Maharashtra Government Servants

2

Regulation of Transfers and Prevention of Delay in Discharge of Official Duties Act, 2005.  Section 4(5) is reproduced as under :-

“Notwithstanding anything contained in section 3 or this section the competent authority may, in special cases, after recording  reasons  in  writing  and  with the prior [approval of the immediately superior]  Transferring  Authority mentioned  in  the  table  of  section  6, transfer  a  Government  servant  before completion of his tenure of post.”

4. The provision does not enable the Government or the  competent  authority  to  make  an  inter-district transfer  affecting  the  chance  of  others. Sub-section  5  of  Section  4,  as  extracted  above, pertains  only  to  transfer  before  completion  of tenure, which we find from Section 3 as three years. The appellant was a Senior  Clerk in Hingoli district and by transferring him to Latur district, the Clerks who  have  been  waiting  for  promotion  are  certainly affected.   

5. We find from the data furnished before this Court that  there  are  people  qualified  in  the  respective category,  who  have  been  waiting  for  promotion  as Senior Clerk.

3

6. Be  that  as  it  may,  Section  4(5)  is  not  an enabling  provision  for  the  Government  to  make inter-district  transfer  affecting  the  chance  of people already working in the transferee districts. The provision, subject to its riders therein, only enables the authority to transfer an employee before completion  of  the  normal  period  of  three  years. The  District  Collector,  in  the  detailed  affidavit filed before this Court on 03.11.2017, has submitted that there was no vacancy available in Latur so as to accommodate the appellant without affecting anybody in the district.

7. In view of the above, we find no merit in the appeal, which is, accordingly, dismissed.

No costs.   

.......................J.               [ KURIAN JOSEPH ]  

.......................J.               [ R. BANUMATHI ]  

New Delhi; November 07, 2017.

4

ITEM NO.15               COURT NO.5               SECTION IX                S U P R E M E  C O U R T  O F  I N D I A                        RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Petition(s) for Special Leave to Appeal (C)  No(s).  12955/2017 (Arising out of impugned final judgment and order dated  07-03-2017 in WP No. 8569/2016 passed by the High Court Of Judicature At Bombay At Aurangabad) VIJAY S/O WAMANRAO KAMBLE                          Petitioner(s)                                 VERSUS DNYANESHWAR MAHADEO MALI & ORS.                    Respondent(s) (IA No.114550/2017-EXEMPTION FROM FILING O.T.) Date : 07-11-2017 This petition was called on for hearing today. CORAM :  HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE KURIAN JOSEPH          HON'BLE MRS. JUSTICE R. BANUMATHI For Petitioner(s) Mr. Atul Babasaheb Dakh, AOR

Mr. Yuvaraj Baburao Gaikwad, Adv.                      For Respondent(s) Mr. Mahaling Pandarge, Adv.

Mr. Nishant Ramakantrao Katneshwarkar, AOR     UPON hearing the counsel the Court made the following                         O R D E R

Leave granted.  The  civil  appeal  is  dismissed  in  terms  of  the  signed

non-reportable Judgment.   Pending Interlocutory Applications, if any, stand disposed of.

(JAYANT KUMAR ARORA)                            (SNEH LATA SHARMA)    COURT MASTER                                 COURT MASTER

(Signed non-reportable Judgment is placed on the file)