Himachal Pradesh High Court
Rajneesh Kumar vs State Of H.P. & Ors on 1 August, 2025
Author: Jyotsna Rewal Dua
Bench: Jyotsna Rewal Dua
IN THE HIGH COURT OF HIMACHAL PRADESH, SHIMLA
CWP No.8620 of 2025
Date of decision: 01.08.2025
.
Rajneesh Kumar. ...Petitioner.
Versus
State of H.P. & Ors. ...Respondents.
Coram:
Ms. Justice Jyotsna Rewal Dua, Judge.
Whether approved for reporting?
For the petitioner
For the respondents :
r :
to Mr. Narender
Advocate.
Singh
Mr. Sikander Bhushan, Deputy
Advocate General, for
Thakur,
respondents No.1 to 3-State.
: Mr. Arun Kaushal, Advocate, for
respondent No.4.
Jyotsna Rewal Dua, Judge
Heard. The petitioner and respondent No.4 are
both serving as Constables (Armourer) in the respondent-
Police Department. On 03.04.2025 (Annexure P-1), the
Director General of Police, Himachal Pradesh, on the
recommendation of the Departmental Selection Committee,
approved the induction of respondent No.4 into the Armourer
Cadre and transferred him from District Hamirpur to District
Sirmour. Despite the aforesaid order, respondent No.4 did
not join at the transferred station for about a month and a
1Whether reporters of Local Papers may be allowed to see the judgment? Yes
half. On 19.05.2025, the Director General of Police issued
two orders: first, cancelling respondent No.4's posting at
.
District Sirmour under the order dated 03.04.2025; and
second, ordering the transfer of the petitioner from District
Hamirpur to District Sirmour.
2. The petitioner has challenged the above orders. It
is contended on behalf of the petitioner that in view of the
of Police,
r it to
standing order dated 03.04.2025 issued by the Director
General was respondent No.4 who was
transferred against the vacancy at District Sirmour.
Respondent No.4 managed to get his transfer order dated
03.04.2025 cancelled and to make way for him, petitioner
was transferred from District Hamirpur to District Sirmour.
A further submission was made that in Police
Department, it is the State Police Establishment Committee,
who is responsible to recommend proposals for postings and
transfers. In the instant case, there was no recommendation
of the State Police Establishment Committee for transfer of
the petitioner from District Hamirpur to District Sirmour,
rather it was respondent No.4, who was initially ordered on
03.04.2025 to be posted in District Sirmour.
3. To a query of the Court about the length of service
of the petitioner in District Hamirpur, learned counsel for the
.
petitioner submitted that the petitioner has completed
almost four years at his present place and is, therefore,
otherwise liable to be transferred. He, however, submitted
that the petitioner is presently facing certain adverse family
circumstances, inasmuch as his younger daughter passed
away two weeks ago and his aged father is suffering with two
stoma bags on his body due to the surgical removal of his
large intestine at PGI, Chandigarh.
At this stage, learned counsel for respondent No.4
submitted that respondent No.4 has also completed almost 5
years in District Hamirpur, but his aged mother is currently
bed ridden and is under treatment at Hamirpur.
4. Respondents No.1 to 3 have filed reply. The
defense taken is that the impugned order dated 19.05.2025
was issued as per the directions received from the office of
the Competent Authority, and thereafter the matter was
placed before the State Police Establishment Committee,
which, in its meeting convened on 28.04.2025, considered
the matter and recommended the petitioner's transfer from
District Hamirpur to District Sirmour. The reply further
states that the petitioner's professional integrity during his
.
tenure at District Hamirpur is not questionable, rather it has
been found to be satisfactory.
5. Along with the reply, the respondents have also
placed on record the proceedings of the State Police
Establishment Committee, which considered the case of the
petitioner and respondent No.4 for their respective transfers
and cancellation of transfer. The proceedings make it evident
that there was no proposal of the respondent-Police
Department for cancellation of respondent No.4's transfer
from District Hamirpur to District Sirmour and of
transferring the petitioner from District Hamirpur to District
Sirmour. The proposals as received from the office of Hon'ble
Chief Minister were acted upon on dotted lines by the State
Police Establishment Committee. No independent application
of the mind by State Police Establishment Committee is
discernible from the proceedings. The cancellation of
respondent No.4's transfer from District Hamirpur to District
Sirmour under order dated 19.05.2025 (Annexure P-2) and
petitioner's consequent transfer on 19.05.2025 from District
Hamirpur to District Sirmour (Annexure P-3) therefore,
deserve to be quashed and set aside. Ordered accordingly.
.
The respondent-Police Department shall, however, be at
liberty to consider the respective cases of transfer of the
petitioner and respondent No.4 afresh in accordance with
law, inter alia, keeping in view the adverse circumstances, as
projected for both the officials in this petition.
The writ petition stands disposed of in the above
terms. All pending miscellaneous application(s), if any, to
also stand disposed of.
Jyotsna Rewal Dua
1st August, 2025 Judge
(Pardeep)
