Calcutta HC dismisses PIL challenging transfers of IAS, IPS officers by EC in poll-bound Bengal

The EC transferred several officers, including the state's chief secretary, the home secretary and the DGP, immediately after the announcement of the assembly election schedule for the state.

Kolkata: The Calcutta High Court on Tuesday dismissed a PIL challenging the transfer of administrative and police officers by the poll panel in West Bengal, saying the petitioner could not establish that the actions were arbitrary and had hurt public interest.

The Election Commission has transferred several officers, including the state's chief secretary, the home secretary and the DGP, after announcing the schedule of the assembly polls in the state.

The petitioner claimed that these large-scale transfers would affect the functioning of the state's administration, and sought that the poll panel's orders be set aside.

Dismissing the petition, a division bench presided by Chief Justice Sujoy Paul held that the petitioner could not establish that the Election Commission of India used its power to transfer officers in an arbitrary manner, which resulted in any injury to public interest.

"In the absence of establishing this elementary ingredient to maintain a PIL, the petition cannot be entertained," said the division bench, also comprising Justice Partha Sarathi Sen.

"In our view, the legality, validity and propriety of transfer orders which have not caused any public injury cannot be gone into in a public interest litigation," the court observed.

It noted that the petitioner, Arka Kumar Nag, made an effort to establish a nexus between certain senior politicians and Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.

However, the ECI's counsel, D S Naidu, submitted that no such persons against whom allegations of connivance or pressure tactics, as alleged, were impleaded by name.

Holding that no allegation of malice can be entertained against the poll panel, the high court observed that "apart from bald pleadings, no material could be placed to establish any such nexus".

It said that merely because the ECI had transferred a sizable number of officers, it cannot be said that action is arbitrary, capricious or mala fide, "more so, when a similar or larger number of transfers/postings of officers had taken place nationwide".

"Thus, we find no reason to hold that while shifting or transferring officers of West Bengal, the ECI did any step-motherly treatment," the court observed.

It said the petitioner could not make out any such case, which establishes with accuracy and precision that the transfer order of officers will lead to any administrative collapse and deprivation of the public from development schemes.

Holding that a transfer is an incident of service, the division bench said that if a transfer order runs contrary to any statutory provision, the aggrieved employee or officer can assail it in appropriate proceedings.

The court, however, said that this judgment will not come in the way of the individual aggrieved officers to challenge their transfer order in appropriate proceedings in accordance with the law.

Noting that the petitioner is a practising lawyer, the bench said that he cannot have a grievance over the transfer of officers unless such moves result in injury to public interest.

On the petitioner's submission seeking initiation of impeachment proceedings against the CEC, the court said it does not see any reason to deal with this aspect at all in the present matter.

The bench said that it does not find "much substance" in the contentions of the petitioner's counsel, Kalyan Banerjee, and Advocate General Kishore Dutta representing the West Bengal government that, because of the transfer of a sizable number of officers and staff, a vacuum has been created in the state.

The court said that in the present case, it is seen that when one officer is transferred, another has occupied his position. "Thus, there is no vacuum created in the system or in the administrative arena," the bench said.

The bench further said the state of West Bengal, which supported the petitioner, is a respondent in the matter and "cannot enter into the shoes of the petitioner."

Elections to the 294-member West Bengal assembly will be held in two phases -- on April 23 and 29. Votes will be counted on May 4.