IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA CWJC No.9586 of 2008 PRABHAT KUMAR Versus THE STATE OF BIHAR & ORS ----------- 3. 11.08.2008 Heard the learned Counsel for the petitioner and the learned Counsel for the State. The petitioner is aggrieved by the order dated 27.6.2008 by which respondent no. 4 has been posted as Executive Engineer in the Bhawan Pramandal, Munger, where the petitioner was posted since earlier without any consequent order with regard to the petitioner. Learned Senior Counsel Shri Basant Choudhary submits that I.A. No. 4745 of 2008 has been filed on 8.8.2008 placing on record Annexure 11, an order dated 30.6.2008 by which the petitioner has now been posted at Arrah. The I.A. application is not on record and therefore the Court requested the learned Counsel to make available his copy for perusal by the court. Let the office trace out the I.A. application stated to have been filed on 8.8.2008 and place the same on record. Now that the petitioner has been given a place of posting, to that extent this Court is not persuaded to interfere in absence of any allegation of violation of statutory rules or serious allegation of malafide. Nonetheless, this Court does find substance in the submission on behalf of the petitioner that he has been shuttled around from one place to another on more than one occasion in between 5.2.2007 and 4.3.2008 when he was finally posted at Arrah. No special circumstances have been shown to justify such frequent transfers. On the contrary despite adjournment granted no counter affidavit has been filed. Transfer matters have their own urgency and cannot be defeated by apathy only. This Court therefore considers it proper to dispose this application with the directions that the petitioner shall not be disturbed from his place of posting by notification no. 5142 dated 30.6.2008 at Annexure 11 as noticed above except in accordance with government procedure, guidelines and in accordance with law. In the given nature of the attitude of the respondents and the grievance of the petitioner this Court considers it proper to impose cost of Rs. 5000/- on the State of Bihar to be deposited with the Secretary, High Court Level Services Authority, Patna. Liberty is given to the Principal Secretary, Building Construction Department, Government of Bihar, Patna to hold an enquiry, fix responsibility for orders of such frequent transfer and recover the cost from the salary of the erring officials. Though transfer is an incidence of service yet undue exercise of that prerogative to the detriment of the employee may affect the employee’s performance and therefore has to be exercised only in accordance with law and not at whims and fancy. Snkumar/- (Navin Sinha,J.)