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Respondent No. 3 D.N. Mishra was posted at the relevant time as Additional Secretary to the Revenue Divisional Commissioner, Central Division at Cuttack and in addition he held the charge of Additional Registrar of the Cuttack Bench of the Tribunal. Apparently, the appellant as Chairman of the Tribunal was not satisfied with the performance of D.N. Mishra as the Additional Registrar of the Tribunal. The appellant wrote a confidential letter dated 10.4.1992 to the Chief Secretary R.K. Rath recommending that any other officer may be deputed to function as the Additional Registrar. In that letter, the appellant had stated that the functioning of the Cuttack Bench of the Tribunal wasunsatisfactory and could not improve because respondent No. 3 D.N. Mishra was not interested in doing this work and was only creating confusion and problems in spite of being explained everything by him as well as the registrar. The letter further stated that the attitutde of D.N. Mishra was obstructive and, therefore, urgent action was necessary in compliance with the High Court's direction confirmed by the Supreme Court. The appellant concluded the letter by stating as under :-
"...... Secondly, we do hope that the Registry at Cuttack functions properly. We may also state that we have noted with satisfaction the statement made in the affidavit filed on 30.4.1992 that remedial measures in this regard, after knowing about the coplaints from his Advocates, have already been taken by the Chairman."

There is thus nothing in the High Court's order against the Chairman of the Tribunal, the appellant, and in fact there is a record of its satisfaction with the steps taken by the Chairman to ensure proper functioning of the cuttack Bench in accordance with its directions. It is in this background the order dated 11.5.1992 was made by the State Government transferring D.N. Mishra to the post of Additional District Magistrate, Koraput, which had the effect of his ceasing to function as the Additional Registrar of the Cuttack Bench of the Tribunal.

Respondent No. 3 challenged his transfer order dated 11.5.1992 by an application made to the Tribunal. There was no allegation of any kind, much less of mala fides, against the Chairman of the Tribunal, in the application so made. On 15.5.1992, a Division Bench comprising of S.K.. Misra, Vice- Chairman and U.N. Mallik, Member (Administrative) granted ex parte stay of the transfer order of D.N. Mishra as the Additional Registrar of the Cuttack Bench in spite of the above background. On 29.5.1992, the State Government filed an application in that proceeding for vacating the interim stay order stating therein the facts and circumstances in which D.N. Mishra had been transferred to facilitate proper functioning of the Cuttack Bench of the Tribunal. D.N. Mishra then made an application to implead the appellant- Chairman of the Tribunal as a party in that proceeding and made allegation of personal malice against him because of the letter dated 10.4.1992, he had writ-ten to the Chief Secretary for relieving D.N. Mishra of the responsibility of functioning as the Additional Registrar of the Tribunal. The State Government's application came before the appellant as Chairman of the Tribunal because of the vacation of the Tribunal. The appellant then transferred the matter to I. Roy, Member (Judicial) by order dated 29.5.1992 with a note refuting the allegation of malice made by D.N. Mishra and Stating that his request to the Chief Secretary to change Mishra from the post of Additional Registrar was occa-Sioned by the fact that his improper functioning re-sulted in inconvenience to the lawyers of Cuttack who had a legitimate grievance against the improper functioning of the Registry at the Cuttack Bench. The appellant stated in the note that as Chairman of the Tribunal, it was his duty to see that the Circuit Bench at Cuttack functions properly and, therefore, he had to adopt such a course. The Member (Judicial) then directed the matter to be placed before the Chairman for listing it before a Division Bench of which he did not wish to be a member. The appellant as Chairman then made an order on 29.6.1992 constituting a Division Bench of the Vice- chairman and Member (Admn.) to hear the matter. This is how the matter came to be heard by the Vice-Chairman S.K. Mishra and Member (Administrative) U.N. Mallik who have made the order dated 26.8.1993 in which strong critical comments and adverse remarks have been made against the appellant as Chairman of the Tribunal while quashing the transfer order of D.N. Mishra.

We are informed that D.N. Mishra has thereafter been transferred by the Government and he is no longer functioning as the Additional Registrar of the Cuttack Bench of the Tribunal. The quashing of the transfer order is not challenged in this appeal. The only question is of the legality and propriety of the critical comments and adverse remarks made against the appellant in the impugned order dated 26.8.1993.

The background in which the transfer order dated 11.5.1992 was issued by the Government posting D.N. Mishra as Additional District Magistrate. Koraput resulting in his ceasing to function as Additional Registrar of the Cuttack Bench of the Tribunal is sufficient to indicate that the transfer of D.N. Mishra was made in public interest and it was to ensure proper functioning of the Cuttack Bench of the Tribunal. The attitude of D.N. Mishra as Additional Registrar of the Cuttack Bench had led to legitimate grievance in the Bar requiring the Chairman of the Tribunal to take prompt steps for proper functioning of the Registry at the Cuttack Bench of which D.N. Mishra was Incharge. The resentment of the Bar escalated to a contempt proceeding before the High Court alleging violation of the court's order for establishment of the Cuttack Bench and ensuring its proper functioning. Even the Chairman of the Tribunal was impleaded therein as a respondent and he escaped therein because of the High Court's conclusion that the Chairman had properly discharged his responsibilities to ensure proper functioning of the Cuttack Bench and for that purpose he had also written to the Chief Secretary on 10.4.1992 to shift D.N. Mishra who was making the functioning of the Registry difficult. In fact, notice of the contempt petition against the appellant was discharged only because of this favourable conclusion reached by the High Court in respect of the appellant. This alone is sufficient to indicate total lack of justification for any adverse command against the appellant.