- (1.) R. K. Mahajan, J. These petition: involve common questions of fact and law therefore, both are being disposed of by; common judgment. This order will dispose of Writ Petition No. 43838 of 199' (challenging impugned order of transfer and Writ Petition No. 6251 of 1998 (chal lenging impugned order of suspension ).
(2.) THIS is interesting case in itself. Petitioner's grievance is that impugned transfer has been made under the in fluence of Energy Minister, Government of U. P. Sri Naresh Agarwal but on pre vious occasions, there are letters on record of Miss. Mayawati and one Rizvi M. L. A. who recommended the case of petitioner for remaining at a particular station, he himself exercised influence of political leaders and thus he is himself exponent of taking shelter of politicians and now he is making grievance of their interference. In democratic system some time necessity may arise but then one should not make the same a basis to challenge the transfer orders. According to petitioner, he joined the services of U. P. State Electricity Board as an Assistant Engineer in the year 1971 and was promoted as an Executive En gineer in the year 1988. While serving as Executive Engineer in Electricity Dis tribution Division Hamirpur the petitioner was transferred from Hamirpur to Gorakhpur vide an order dated 1-2-1997 (Annexure 2 to the first writ peti tion ). Thereafter he was transferred from Gorakhpur to Orai. He joined at Orai on 30-8-97. Then again by an order dated 21-11-1997 (Annexure 1 to the first writ peti tion) he was transferred from Orai to Obra. Hence the petitioner filed the first writ petition challenging the impugned order of transfer dated 21-11-1997, alleg ing that he was frequently transferred within a short span of time from places to places at the instance of the Minister of Energy, Government of U. P. Sri Naresh Agarwal. The impugned order of transfer was stayed by this Court vide an order dated 5-1-1998 (Annexure 5 to the IInd writ petition ). Further according to petitioner he was placed under suspension by impugned order dated 12-2-1998 hence he has filed second writ petition alleging that the im pugned order of suspension is illegal, im proper and against the principles of natural justice and has been made at the direction of the Minister of Energy, Government of U. P. Sri Naresh Agarwal. As such both these petitions have come up for consideration before this Court. The main reliefs sought by the petitioner are that the impugned orders of transfer and suspension be quashed, petitioner be paid his salary and no interference be made in the functioning of petitioner as Executive Engineer Orai.
(3.) IN short the grievance of the petitioner is that he has been punished for having dared to disobey the instructions of Energy Minister in not recalling the revised assessed bill of an INdustry, name ly, M/s. Garima Fellow Alloys, owner of which was relation of Sri Naresh Agarwal, Energy Ministery, Government of U. P. The petitioner has alleged that while posted as Executive Engineer, Electricity Distribution Division, Orai he made thorough enquiry in respect of the losses suffered by the U. P. State Electricity Board on one particular feeder line which provided electricity to Hindustan Lever Ltd. , M/s. Begepro Food and Feeds and M/s. Garima Ferro Alloys and the inves tigation so undertaken by him revealed that M/s. Garima Ferro Alloys was engaged in theft of electricity and the amount of bills paid by the said INdustry was not commensurate with the electricity supplied. It is further alleged that above mentioned three industries were being supplied electricity and the individual re quirement of Hindustan Lever Ltd. was 2400 KVA, M/s. Vegepro Food and Feeds was 1200 KVA and M/s. Garima Ferro Alloys was 6000 KVA but the consump tion which was being shown by the said three industries was between 6 to 7 KWH by Hindustan Lever Ltd. , M/s. Garima Ferro Alloys showed the consumption of 4 to 5 lac units and thus the Hindustan Lever Ltd. which had the power consump tion capacity of 2400 KVA was consuming electricity of 6 to 7 lac per month whereas M/s. Garima Ferro Alloys having capacity of 6000 KVA was showing consumption of 4 to 5 lacs units per month only. It is also alleged that after enquiry petitioner as sessed and raised the bills of M/s. Garima Ferro Alloys to 14, 51, 079 units and the assessed demand was of Rs, 42, 28, 940, 13 (Annexures 4-A, 4-B and 4-C to the first writ petition ). The petitioner had alleged that this raising of bills of M/s. Garima Ferro Alloys caused annoyance and displeasure to Sri Naresh Agarwal, the Energy Minister who is relation of Sri Mukesh Agarwal and Praveen Agarwal, the Directors of M/s. Garima Ferro Alloys. The petitioner has further alleged that he was made to appear before the Energy Minister Sri Naresh Agarwal when he visited the factory premises, the Rimjhim Ispat at Bharwa Sumerpur, Distt. Hamirpur while going to Chitrakoot on 16-11- 97. In nut shell the grievance of the petitioner is that since he could not change or revise the bills of aforesaid Industry as desired by the Energy Minister hence the impugned orders of transfer and suspension have been passed against him. The petitioner has also al leged that he has been victimised to wreak vengeance so much so that the suspension order amounts to clear defiance of the order passed by this Court in Writ No. 43838 of 1997. It may be pointed out that in these writ petitions an order was passed by Lucknow Bench to dispose of the repre sentation of petitioner regarding his trans fer by a reasoned order. It has also been alleged that after suspension order the petitioner was attached to Obra which is illegal and arbitrary. The petitioner has gone to the extent that suspension order has been passed as the Minister felt that how could he dare to file writ petition against his transfer order.;