Himachal Govt Bars Employees From Directly Approaching Court With Grievance On Transfer

Shimla: The Himachal Pradesh government has barred its employees from directly approaching courts with grievances related to transfer, warning them of serious consequences. It clarified that employees must first adhere to the prescribed procedure at the departmental level.

As per the new provision of the amended "Comprehensive Guiding Principles-2013 (CGP-2013)" issued by the Department of Personnel, employees are required to first submit any transfer-related grievances to the relevant competent authority and filing a petition in court before the completion of the departmental procedure will be deemed a violation of the directives.

"If an employee disregards the prescribed procedure and approaches the court directly, it will be treated as a case of grave misconduct. In such cases, disciplinary proceedings may be initiated against the concerned employee under the Central Civil Services (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules, 1965, and other applicable service rules," an office memorandum by the Department of Personnel states.

The office memorandum issyed by the Department of Personnel. (ETV Bharat)

The government said the decision was taken after seeing many employees approaching the courts directly — rather than filing complaints at the departmental level — against transfer orders in recent years. Courts often grant stay orders in such cases, which adversely affect administrative operations.

Meanwhile, the Himachal Pradesh High Court has observed that preventing an employee from filing a petition against a transfer amounts to interfering with or obstructing the administration of justice and falls within the definition of criminal contempt.

"Filing a petition in the High Court is a constitutional right guaranteed under Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution. It is available not only to citizens of the state but also to others.

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