Teachers Have To Maintain Safe Distance From Political Parties: Orissa High Court Quashes Letter Enabling MPs & MLAs To Recommend Transfer Of Teachers
The Petitions before the Orissa High Court were filed by a set of teachers challenging the transfer orders.
Justice Dixit Krishna Shripad, Orissa High Court
The Orissa High Court has quashed a letter which provides for the MPs & MLAs recommending to the jurisdictional authorities the cases of transfer of teachers. The High Court held that teachers have to maintain a safe distance from political parties & elected representatives.
The Petitions before the High Court were filed by a set of teachers challenging the transfer orders. A few of the petitions involved the transfer orders that were put in challenge in the departmental appeals. Other few, called into question the letter, which provided for the MPs & MLAs recommending to the jurisdictional authorities the cases of transfer.
The Single Bench of Justice Krishna Shripad observed, “Impugned letter of the kind, which provides for MPs/MLAs recommending transfer of teachers, has the potential of creating a seamless nexus between the political parties/ candidates and the community of teachers. This would not augur well to the system. One needs no research to visualize the fruits of poisonous tree that would grow on the soil of such nexus. It is teachers, more particularly those who teach up to the level of HSC/X Standard, who mould the younger generation as citizenry in the making. As of necessity, teachers have to maintain safe distance from political parties & elected representatives.
Advocate K. Swain represented the Petitioner while Addl. Govt. Advocate Saroj Ku. Jee represented the Respondent.
Arguments
It was the case of the petitioners that the impugned transfer orders are contrary to the statutory Guidelines which regulate the transfer. The transfer Guidelines provide for decision-making by the Committee on a normative basis, and the transfer orders are vitiated because of political influence. It was further submitted that the letter dated May 13, 2025, which enables the jurisdictional MPs & MLAs to recommend teachers for transfer, is without the authority of law and unsustainable.
The respondents argued that the impugned letter dated May 13, 2025, is in the nature of Executive Instructions to enable MPs & MLAs to recommend for transfer of teachers, since they know the local requirement and even otherwise, their recommendation is subject to other norms laid down in the very same letter. It was also contended that the ultimate decision was being taken by the Transfer Committee.
Reasoning
The transfer Guidelines specified that the transfer exercise can be undertaken during the period between the 16th of April and the 10th of June. This was to ensure that no hardship would be occasioned to any educational institution which would be in the lull during the interregnum between the final examinations and admissions, which ordinarily would be during the said period. “In few of petitions, it is other than the competent authorities who have issued the impugned transfers, though they are beyond the specified period. An order without jurisdiction is a nullity and this applies to such orders, as rightly submitted by learned counsel appearing for the petitioners”, it added.
In the matter relating to the transfer relating to other civil servants, the Bench noted that the elected representatives, like MLAs & MPs can have their say. “What is dismaying is the functional nature of impugned letter dated 13.05.2025 which precedes promulgation of transfer Guidelines. The said letter provides for MPs/MLAs recommending transfer of teachers, of course, subject to certain norms & restrictions. Nothing has been stated in the said letter as to under what authority it has been issued, to claim legal efficacy”, it added.
Highlighting the cases wherein recommendations of the kind are virtually treated as commands, the Bench mentioned, “Therefore, the transfer orders which are structured inter alia on such recommendations, are to be treated as having been made on extraneous considerations and consequently are liable to be invalidated.”
The Bench found force in the submission of the AGAs that even if the transfer orders are set aside, those teachers who have reported for duty at the transferred places should continue till after the expiry of the academic year, so that the community of students is not put to prejudice. “No prejudice would be caused to anyone, if the course suggested by the learned AGAs is accepted. However, such of the petitioners should be restored to their original places wherein they were working before the issuance of impugned orders, within one week following the expiry of academic year 2025-26. Any delay in this regard would be viewed very seriously in the next level of the legal battle”, it ordered.
The Bench issued a Writ of Certiorari quashing the impugned letter and the impugned transfer orders. “A Writ of Mandamus issues to continue the petitioners in the same places in which they were respectively working before the issuance of impugned transfer orders, subject to what has been stated in paragraph 4.7 above”, it ordered.
Cause Title: Ranjan Kumar Tripathy & Ors. v. State of Odisha & Others (Case No.: W.P.(C) Nos.20875 of 2025)
Appearance
Petitioner: M/s. Kunal Ku. Swain, Advocates K. Swain, J.R. Khuntia, M/s.Sukanta Ku. Dalai, P. Swain, Advocates S. Mahapatra, B. Bhuyan, J. Bhuyan, S.K. Panda, M/s.Durgesh Narayan Rath, Advocate A.K. Saa & S.Das, M/s.Ramdas Achary, S.Das, Advocates S. Srichandan, P.Agarwal, Biswabihari Mohanty, M/s.Mohit Ku. Pati, Advocates M. Pati, S. Kar & S.S. Pati, M/s. (Dr.) Purusottam Chuli, Advocates P.Nath & P.Punyatoya, M/s.Sameer Ku. Das, Advocates P.K. Behera & N.Jena, M/s.Agasti Kanungo, C. Nayak, Advocates N.K.Mishra, S. Sukla
Respondent: Addl. Govt. Advocate Saroj Ku. Jee, M/s.R.R.Ray, Advocates N.K. Sen, P.K. Samal, S.R. Mishra, M/s.K.K. Rout, Advocates S.K. Rout, S.K. Baral, P.N.Pattnaik, T.S. Swaraj, S. Sthitaprajna, S.Sahoo, S.K. Bhuyan