Chennai: Madras high court has summoned Mr R. Rajagopal, secretary to Tamil Nadu Governor Mr Banwarilal Purohit, to appear before the court on March 19 in connection with a contempt proceeding for alleged willful disobedience of court order.
A division bench of Justice S. Manikumar and Justice M. Venugopal directed Rajagopal to appear before the court on March 19 to explain why contempt proceedings cannot be initiated against him. The bench said though contempt was made by his predecessor, it can also be extended against the present officer who holds the post and who has knowledge of such contempt.
The matter pertains to Nagaraj, who was appointed as a steno-typist in the animal husbandry department on August 1, 1983. His service was regularised in 1986.
Thereafter, as he opted for the post of assistants/personal clerks in the Tamil Nadu Ministerial Service, he was transferred to the Governor's secretariat and appointed as acting assistant on January 20, 1988.
Later, he was promoted and posted as personal clerk to deputy secretary to the Governor at Raj Bhavan.
Nagaraj was directed to take over the post of section officer as a person already holding the post got reverted back to his parent department. On October 4, 1996, Nagaraj sent a letter to the then governor's secretary to consider him for promotion to the post of private secretary or to upgrade his post as section officer. Within four days of sending the representation, Nagaraj was reverted to his parent department.
On his plea, the administrative tribunal, in January 1997, granted an interim stay against the transfer. Opposing this, Raj Bhavan moved the High Court. On September 30, 2009, the High Court dismissed the plea, noting that once a person was regularly appointed to a post, in accordance with existing rules and in the absence of anything contrary to the rules, they cannot be involuntarily repatriated to their parent department.
