Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Mar 27: In a petition filed by Anjum Javed and others seeking quashment of Government order reverting all the Patwaries to their home districts, High Court today directed the State to clarify certain issues.
After hearing Advocate ZS Watali appearing for the petitioners whereas AAG HA Siddiqui appearing for the State, Justice Janak Raj Kotwal observed, “administrative decisions of the State generally are not amenable to the judicial review and greater latitude is required to be conceded to the State and its instrumentalities in this sphere”.
“Judicial review of an administrative decision of the Government in exercise of the jurisdiction of this court under Article 226 of the Constitution is permissible if it is shown that the action of the Government suffers from arbitrariness, favouritism or mala fides”, Justice Kotwal said, adding “as no right got conferred on the petitioners by providing their services to Settlement Organization, no right can be said to have accrued in them to challenge the Government’s decision of sending them back to their parents districts”.
“It stands sufficiently explained that even though Patwaries are appointed at district level and post of the Patwari is a district cadre post, a combined seniority list is prepared for the reason that next post in the hierarchy is that of the Girdawar, which is filled up by promotion of Patwaries and for that reason a joint seniority list is also prepared”, the court observed.
“The application of Government Order dated 09.03.2015 has been sought on the basis of Government Order dated 18.07.2014 whereby 3012 posts of Patwaries for newly created administrative units have been created by corresponding reduction of 1093 posts of Patwaries of Settlement Organization and 218 posts of Agrarian Reforms Tehsils”, the court said, adding “it is also stated in the reply that with the creation of new administrative units, Settlement Organization has undergone a complete change. In the preliminary objections, the respondents have quoted a note from Government Order dated 18.07.2014 that ‘at present the Settlement Patwaries have also been readjusted in administrative units and there is no separate organization as was existing prior to 18.07.2014”.
“Contextually, it is not clear nor it has been explained as to how even after issue of Government Order dated 18.07.2014 more than seven months prior to issue of Government Order dated 09.03.2015, petitioners have been allowed to stay put in the Settlement Organization and were not reverted back to the districts and adjusted in compliance with Government Order dated 18.07.2014”, the court said, adding “Government must look into this aspect of the matter also and should issue clarification while applying Government Order dated 09.03.2015 to the Patwaries of Settlement Organization”.
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