In the ongoing dispute regarding cadre allocations for IAS and IPS officers following the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, several officers have again approached the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) Hyderabad to challenge the relieving orders issued by the Central government. These orders mandate that officers assigned to a state under the cadre division must report to that state.
Prominent officers such as Kata Amrapali, Vakati Karuna, Vani Prasad, Gummalla Srijana, and Ronald Rose have filed petitions at CAT, seeking relief from these orders. Among them, Srijana was assigned to Telangana but is currently working in Andhra Pradesh. The officers argue that after serving in their current states for several years, they should be allowed to continue, and they have challenged the Centre’s decision, calling it a vague or “non-speaking” order that lacks clarity.
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The officers’ challenge follows a precedent set in the Somesh Kumar case. Somesh Kumar, who was then the Telangana Chief Secretary (CSS), had contested his transfer to Andhra Pradesh. The Hyderabad High Court, under the leadership of Chief Justice Ujjal Bhuyan, ruled in favor of the Centre, affirming that Somesh Kumar must go to Andhra Pradesh and that the Department of Personnel and Training (DOPT) has the final say in such cadre matters.
However, in other similar cases, officials argued that individual circumstances should be considered. The cases were transferred to a division bench headed by Justice Abhinandan Kumar Shavili, who advised the officers to present their issues and appeal directly to the Centre. The officers contend that their long-term service in one state should be taken into account, and they have petitioned CAT to allow them to remain where they currently serve.
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The outcome of this legal battle will depend on the CAT’s ruling on Tuesday, which could either grant an interim order allowing the officers to stay in Telangana or require them to move to their originally assigned states. This decision is significant for the officers who have invested many years in the regions they now seek to remain in, and for broader cadre management policies in India.
