Frame guidelines on posting lower-cadre officers to higher grades: Karnataka HC to govt

The High Court of Karnataka has directed the state government to issue necessary guidelines as to the circumstances under which a lower-cadre person can be posted to a higher-cadre post and to make it mandatory to assign proper reasons when a lower cadre person is posted to a post designated for higher cadre before getting the approval of the chief minister.

A division bench comprising Justices K Somashekar and Rajesh Rai K gave this direction in the litigation between two KAS officers.

The petitioner, Prajna Ammembala, had challenged the August 2, 2023, order passed by the Karnataka State Administrative Tribunal (KSAT), setting aside the July 6, 2023, notification, transferring her to the post of Additional Director -I Department of Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs, Bengaluru.

This post is for an officer belonging to the IAS cadre or one who is in the cadre of KAS (super-time scale) in case of the non-availability of an IAS officer.

Potharaju, the incumbent officer, had challenged the transfer order before KSAT, saying it was premature and that there was no approval from the chief minister.

The KSAT had observed that Ammembala was ineligible for the said post.

Ammembala had argued before the division bench that even Potharaju, who too is a KAS (senior-scale) officer, is also ineligible to hold the post and said that he has no locus standi to challenge her posting.

The division bench noted that the order about upgrading the post in favour of Potharaju was for a temporary period and said it could not be construed as a promotion of Potharaju to KAS (selection grade). The bench cited the apex court judgement in the BSNL vs R Santhakumari Velusamy case and said that promotion would not only include the increase in pay scale and rank but would also include advancement in honour, dignity and grade.

The court said orders posting Potharaju were very narrow and blanket, “…these orders are very narrow and blanket as to why a person of a lower cadre is posted to an encadred post which can only be held by a person of higher cadre. In present case, person either IAS cadre or KAS (Super time scale) cadre can only be posted as Additional Director-I. Hence, we are constrained to opine that, even though such transfer orders bear the chief minister’s signature on it, but such orders cannot be said to be a licit order as we find absence of reasons to enlighten the chief minister as to non-availability of eligible persons to be posted to said post and as to why a person of a lower cadre is posted to the said encadred place,” the bench said.

The court has directed Ammembala to report to the place of Additional Director -I Department of Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs, Bengaluru, subject to the state considering posting eligible persons to the said post.