FALAK SHER, J.-This judgment will dispose of writ petitions No.1116 to 1.135, 1168, 1169, 1170 and 1462 of 1991 on account of admitted commonality of facts and law viz., the petitioners, non-gazzetted employees of the Central Excise, Sales Tax and Land Customs Department, Inspectors/Deputy Superintendents, attached to the Collectorate of Customs and Central Excise, Lahore feeling aggrieved by their transfer to the Collectorate of Customs and Central Excise, Multan ordered by the Central Board of Revenue, resorted to the captioned petitions urging bi-fold contentions viz., Coram non judice i.e. The Central Board of Revenue had no jurisdictional competence for having been specifically recruited by the Collector to serve within the regional territory of the Lahore Collectorate as perceived by First Proviso to section 10 of the Civil Servants Act, 1973 read in conjunction with Rule 15 of the Civil Servants (Appointment, Promotion and Transfer) Rules, 1973 and mala fide i.e. The ostensible basis Of the transfer, over staffing at the Lahore Collectorate stands nullified by absorbing fresh promotees locally, which I am afraid are misconceived.
2. With a view to appreciating the first contention, perusal of the statutory provisions referred to by the learned counsel would be conducive, text whereof in extenso for the sake of convenience of reference is reproduced herein below:- Section 10 of the Civil Servants Act. 1973.
Posting and transfer "Every civil servant shall be liable to serve anywhere or outside Pakistan, in any post under the Federal Government, or any Provincial Government or local authority, or a corporation or body set up or established by any such Government: Provided that nothing contained in this section shall apply to a civil servant recruited specifically to serve in a particular area or region: Provided further that, where a civil servant is required to serve in a post outside his service or cadre, his terms and conditions of service as to his pay shall not be less favourable than those to which he would have been entitled if he had not been so required to serve."
Rule 15 of the Civil Servants (Appointment. Promotion and Transfer) Rules. 1973: "Vacancies in posts in grades 3 to 15 in offices which serve only a, particular province or region shall be filled by appointment of persons domiciled in the province or region concerned."
3. Administering the literal, grammatical as well as logical rule of construction by way of conjunctive reading of text of the main section with the two provisos thereof, in unambiguous terms it emerges that a civil servant is obliged to serve anywhere within or beyond the country's frontiers under Federal or Provincial Government, local authority, corporation or body set up by them, Save for those specifically recruited to serve in a particular area or region by virtue of the first proviso, which exception too is not of inviolable sanctity upon visualisation through the succeeding proviso consciously legislated by the competent legislature, admittedly being an inter voven texture with the latter making an inroad into the preceding provisions.
Further the expressions"specifically" appearing in the first proviso being pressed into service by the leamed counsel for the petitioners as the sheet anchor of the arguments stands dissipated by the very terms of recruitment i.e. Clause 6 of the appointment letter expressly enshrines the condition requiring the petitioners to serve anywhere in Pakistan which was duly accepted and acted upon, thus presently can't be allowed to reprobate the same by means of this adventurous course.
4. While rule 15 ibid only envisages appointments of local domiciliates to the posts contemplated by grades 3 to 15, which independent of the fact being a subordinate legislation thus can't travel beyond the parent statute doesn't cater for fetters being urged by the learned counsel.
5. Qua the competency of the Central Board of Revenue, it suffices to observe that being at the apex of the departmental hierarchy, it inherently enjoys the inter collectorate co-ordinating function like the establishment division of the Federal Government for the despatching of civil servants between the latter and the Provincial Governments or corporations, local authorities or statutory bodies set up by them.
6. Likewise, the contention of mala fide stands repelled by the very text of the letter dated 13.5.1991 referred to in this behalf addressed to the Member Administration, Customs and Excise, Central Board of Revenue, Islamabad by the Collector of Customs, Lahore, making alternative proposals viz., either to transfer en bloc fresh promotees to Multan Collectorate or the existing Inspectors, who reportedly had previously manoeuvred cancellation of their transfers back to Lahore.
7. Additionally, no vested right of the petitioners was spelt out by the learned counsel for their holding particular place of posting.
8. Independent of the aforegoing, posting and transfer being a necessary term and condition of service of a civil servant, could be grudged against before the Service Tribunal within the contemplation of Article 212 of the 1973 Constitution.
Consequently, petitions being devoid of any substance are hereby dismissed with no orders as to costs.