JUDGMENT: Raja Saeed Akram Khan, J.-- The captioned appeal by leave of the Court has been filed against the order of the Service Tribunal dated 22.09.2014, whereby the interim relief granted by the Service Tribunal to the appellant, herein, vide order dated 11.04.2014, has been recalled.
2. The facts necessary for disposal of this appeal are that through transfer order dated 07.08.2014, respondent No.5, herein, was transferred to Girls Primary School, Barhati, Tehsil Dudyal on the ground of her stay period of 10 years and zero result in the Elementary Board Exams, at place of the appellant and the appellant was transferred after a stay period of three years at Girls Primary School B-2. The said transfer order was kept in abeyance on 08.08.2014, till further orders. The appellant, herein, challenged the order dated 08.08.2014 by way of appeal in the Service Tribunal and along with the appeal an application for stay order was also filed. The learned Service Tribunal admitted the appeal for regular hearing and issued the stay order but later on recalled the same through the impugned order dated 22.09.2014, on the ground that the transfer order has been passed during the academic session, in violation of the transfer policy. Hence, this appeal by leave of the Court.
3. Mr. Zubair Ahmed Raja, Advocate, the learned counsel for the appellant argued that the impugned judgment is against law and the facts of the case which is not sustainable in the eye of law. He contended that the learned Service Tribunal failed to appreciate the transfer policy dated 03.01.2013, in its true perspective. While referring clause (iii) of paragraph 2 of the transfer policy he submitted that the transfer on the ground of bad performance, absence, misconduct and misbehavior can be made at any time, but the learned Service Tribunal has not considered this aspect of the case.
4. On the other hand, Raja Khalid Mehmood Khan, Advocate, the learned counsel for respondent No.5, strongly opposed the arguments advanced by the learned counsel for the appellant. He submitted that the impugned order is perfect and legal which is not open for any interference by this Court. He contended that the transfer order dated 07.08.2014 was issued in violation of the transfer policy; therefore, the learned Service Tribunal was fully justified to vacate the stay-order. He added that the transfer order its shows that the same is illegal as the reasons assigned for the transfer of respondent No.5 are against the record. He further added that the performance of respondent No.5 is satisfactory and the word bad performance was inadvertently entered into the transfer notification which was later on rectified.
5. We have heard the learned counsel for the parties and gone through the record along with the impugned order. The perusal of the record reveals that vide transfer notification dated 07.08.2014, the appellant, herein, was transferred from Girls Primary School Barhati, Tehsil Dudyal to Girls Primary School B-2, Mirpur and respondent No.5, herein, from Girls Primary School B-2 to Girls Primary School Barhati. It is spelt out from the record that in compliance of the said transfer order, the appellant had submitted her joining report at new place of posting. However, on 08.08.2014, the authority concerned issued another notification through which the transfer order supra was kept in abeyance till further orders. The appellant filed appeal before the Service Tribunal and also moved application for suspension of the operation of the order dated 08.08.2014. The learned Service Tribunal vide order dated 11.08.2014, granted the interim relief to the appellant, but later on after obtaining the objections from the other side recalled the order dated 11.08.2014. As the main appeal is pending before the Service Tribunal, therefore, at this stage, we do not intend to dilate upon the merits of the case and only confine ourselves to the point; whether the Service Tribunal was justified to vacate the temporary injunction issued on 11.08.2014, or not. From the perusal of the impugned order it transpires that the learned Service Tribunal recalled the order dated 11.08.2014, mainly on the ground that the transfer notification dated 07.08.2014, was issued during the academic session, in violation of the transfer policy. It may be observed here that although in the transfer policy it has been categorically mentioned that the transfer order of the teaching staff shall be made only at the end and before the start of educational session, however, some eventualities have also been provided for transfer of the teaching staff even during the educational session. It will be advantageous to reproduce here paragraph 2(iii) of the transfer policy which reads as under:- {{URDU TEXT}} It will also be useful to reproduce here the relevant portion of the transfer notification dated 07.08.2014, which reads as under:- {{URDU TEXT}} After going through the transfer notification, it appears that respondent No.5 was transferred on the ground that her stay period is more than 10 years at one station and result is zero, in the Elementary Board Exams. As the bad performance is also one of the eventualities provided in the transfer policy for transfer of the teaching staff during educational session, therefore, prima facie no violation of the transfer policy has been made while issuing the transfer notification dated 07.08.2014. It is pertinent to mention here that the version of respondent No.5 is that her performance is satisfactory in nature and in this regard she brought on record a verification of Elementary Board, whereas, the appellant, herein, has also placed on record the verification issued by the Assistant Education Officer and the result sheet of session 2013-14, regarding the bad performance of respondent No.5; however, at this stage we do not intend to go into the genuineness/authenticity of these documents. As the appeal is pending before the Service Tribunal, therefore, the Service Tribunal after examining this aspect shall decide the matter finally. Apparently from the transfer notification dated 07.08.2014, it reveals that no violation of the transfer policy has been made, therefore, the learned Service Tribunal was not justified to vacate the temporary injunction issued on 11.08.2014, merely on the ground that the transfer order has been issued in violation of the transfer policy.
In the light of the above discussion, this appeal is accepted and the impugned order is set aside. The operation of the notification dated 08.08.2014, through which the transfer notification dated 07.08.2014, was kept in abeyance, is suspended till disposal of appeal by the Service Tribunal. The Service Tribunal is directed to decide the appeal on merits expeditiously, without taking influence from the observations made in this judgment.
No order as to costs.