Being Mother Of Minor Children No Ground To Resist Transfer: Meghalaya High Court Dismisses MES Employee's Plea

The Meghalaya High Court, presided over by Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice W Diengdoh, on Monday dismissed a plea filed by a woman employee of the Military Engineer Services (MES) who sought to resist her transfer on the grounds of having minor children.

The court upheld the transfer order, stating that routine transfers necessary for administrative purposes should not be impeded unless malice in fact or serious prejudice is proven.

"This is a desperate attempt by an employee in the Military Engineer Services to resist an order of transfer on the specious ground that she has two minor children aged about 6 and 4, respectively ... It does not appear from the rules governing the petitioner’s service that there is any latitude given to an employee for resisting transfer on the ground of being the mother of minor children", the bench observed.

The petitioner, an employee in the Military Engineer Services, had requested a mercy plea to her employer, citing the regular travel commitments of her husband, who is also in the service. She argued that she would be more confident to leave her children behind and accept any posting once they reach the age of 8 and 6, respectively, which would take approximately two more years.

However, the court was of the view that the petitioner failed to present any cogent grounds to resist transfer and that she had been aware of the transferable nature of her job from the beginning.

Thus, it dismissed the plea.

Case Title: Reena Sohphoh vs Union of India and ors

Citation: 2023 LiveLaw (Meg) 24

Click Here To Read/Download Judgment