Ranchi, Aug. 3: A controversy surrounding the transfer of 56 upper and lower division clerks in Jharkhand’s Palamu Division has reached the Jharkhand High Court, with affected employees challenging the exercise over alleged procedural irregularities, selective implementation of rules and lack of transparency.
In a petition filed before the High Court, the employees have alleged that the transfer process was carried out in violation of the Director of Secondary Education’s prescribed guidelines and followed a “pick-and-choose” approach instead of a uniform, rule-based policy.
The petitioners have sought a high-level inquiry into the entire transfer exercise and demanded the preparation of a fresh transfer list based on objective criteria such as seniority, length of service, disability status and family circumstances.
According to the petition, transfer norms were not applied uniformly, with several employees who were allegedly eligible for transfer being retained in their existing districts, while others were shifted. The employees further claimed that seniority and humanitarian considerations, including family responsibilities, were ignored during the exercise.
The petition also questioned the rationale behind retaining some clerks in the same district despite their postings dating back to 1999 and 2006, while transferring others. It further alleged that a disabled employee was transferred nearly 40 kilometres away despite provisions favouring nearby postings and raised concerns over the second transfer within a year of an employee appointed on compassionate grounds.
Upper Division Clerk Pradeep Kumar Singh alleged that the authorities failed to follow key provisions of the Director of Secondary Education’s instructions while issuing the transfer orders.
“Clauses 1, 2 and 3 of the Director of Secondary Education’s letter were not followed while issuing the transfer orders,” Singh said.
He further alleged that “many employees with less than three years of service were retained in their current districts, while others were transferred.”
Referring to an earlier case, Singh said transfer orders in Hazaribagh were cancelled after irregularities came to light and urged similar action in Palamu.
“Transfer orders were also cancelled in Hazaribagh after violations of rules were found. We demand an impartial investigation into the alleged irregularities in Palamu Division and cancellation of the current transfer orders,” he said.
The petitioners have also demanded that the Education Department adopt a transparent and rule-based transfer mechanism similar to the one followed in South Chotanagpur Division to prevent future disputes.
The Education Department has not issued any official response to the allegations so far.
With the matter now before the Jharkhand High Court, the case is expected to have wider implications for departmental transfer policies and administrative transparency in the state. The court’s decision is likely to be closely watched by employees as well as the Education Department.
