Transfer To Accommodate Another Employee Doesn't Establish Malafide; Employee Can Be Transferred While On Study Leave: MP High Court

The Madhya Pradesh High Court has held that an employee can be transferred while being on a study leave. [2026 LiveLaw (MP) 224]

Dismissing a class II employee's appeal, the division bench of Justice Pranay Verma and Justice Jai Kumar Pillai observed;

"...this Court unequivocally concludes that there is no law or policy stipulating that a person cannot be transferred while on study leave. Therefore, the transfer order cannot be faulted on this ground". 

An intra-court writ appeal was filed by a class II employee challenging the order of the Single Bench, wherein his petition challenging his transfer order was dismissed. The appellant claimed that he was being transferred from Janpad Panchayat Morena to Janpad Panchayat Morar in District Gwalior. 

The appellant's transfer came in response to adjusting another employee (respondent no 4), who requested a transfer on his own expenses to Janpad Panchayat Morar. The appellant claimed that the impugned transfer order was malafide as it was only passed to accommodate respondent no 4, who was on a study leave. 

The counsel for the appellant argued that his wife was working as a Social Security Officer in Distrct Bhind, and is six months pregnant, facing medical complications. The counsel submitted that his wife has been prescribed rest and, therefore, he is the only one taking care of his 3-year-old daughter. 

The counsel highlighted that the appellant was being transferred 600 kms away, which violates Clause 23 of the transfer policy, which provides that spouses should be kept in one district. 

The counsel for the respondents argued that the appellant's posting at Morar did not confer any vested right to continue at the same place indefinitely. The counsel argued that the State is within its rights to consider representations and direct transfers accordingly. 

The court first examined the State government's conduct in considering the transfer request of respondent no 4. The court noted:

"The State, being a model employer, may consider the difficulty of an employee and post them at a particular place to overcome personal difficulty, which does not render the consequential transfer of another employee illegal". 

The bench further reiterated that the burden of proving malafides lies upon the person alleging it, and in the present case, the appellant had merely made allegations without sufficient evidence to support his claim. 

Further, the court held that there is no law or policy stating that a person on study leave cannot be transferred. The court noted the transfer to be "incident of service".

The bench further highlighted that the court cannot interfere in a transfer order until the employee proves that the transfer was malafide or made in violation of any statutory provisions. 

However, noting the personal difficulties cited by the appellant, the bench suggested that the appellant make a representation before the competent authority. In this regard, the court observed:

"A breach of policy guidelines does not grant a legally enforceable right to challenge a transfer; the appropriate remedy lies in representation before the competent authority". 

The bench also noted that the appellant had stayed a considerable period of time at his present place of posting, due to the effect of the interim order of June 19, 2025. Thus, the bench dismissed the appeal. 

Case Title: Saurabh Garg v State of Madhya Pradesh, WA-1819-2026

Citation: 2026 LiveLaw (MP) 224

For Appellant: Advocate Arun Dudawat

For Respondents: Advocate Dharmendra Nayak

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