Madras High Court stays transfer order of joint director

Chennai: The Madras High Court stayed the transfer order issued to Joint Director, District Mission Management Unit, Tamil Nadu State Rural Livelihood Mission, Perambalur district. In the petition, S. Devanathan alleged that he was victimised for not selecting persons recommended by a local AIADMK MLA for government’s subsidised two-wheeler scheme. 

When his plea came up for hearing Justice Satrughana Pujahari passed an interim stay against the transfer order. Admitting his plea, the judge passed the interim order and directed the government to file its response by July 3.

S. Devanathan submitted that on February 26 this year he took charge as Joint Director, District Mission Management Unit, Tamil Nadu State Rural Livelihood Mission, Perambalur district. 

When he joined the post at Perambalur, the process for identifying the beneficiaries under the ‘Amma Two-Wheeler scheme’ for working women was underway. Perambalur MLA R. Tamilselvan had furnished his own list of women to his predecessor, to select them as beneficiaries.

Out of the total 810 beneficiaries, 126 were already selected by the district level selection committee headed by the district collector even before his appointment, remaining 684 were selected after he assumed the office, he said.

The MLA often contacted him and other officials through his supporters, attempted to mount pressure on the officials to include the persons of his choice in the list of beneficiaries.