HC 'guardian for its subordinates': SC directs relief to Jharkhand woman judicial officer

New Delhi, Aug 22 (IANS) The Supreme Court on Friday came to the aid of a woman judicial officer in Jharkhand, directing the High Court to reconsider her transfer in light of her personal circumstances.

A bench of Chief Justice B.R. Gavai and Justice K. Vinod Chandran, while hearing the plea of Additional District Judge (ADJ) Kashika M. Prasad, observed that High Courts must act as guardians of their subordinate judiciary.

"The High Court should be sensitive towards the problems of its judicial officers and take care of their personal and family circumstances. The High Court is the guardian for its subordinate judicial officers. Such matters should not be made an issue of prestige," the bench remarked.

Prasad, currently posted at Hazaribagh District Court, is a single parent to her son and belongs to the Scheduled Caste category. She had sought six months of child care leave to look after her son, who is preparing for his Class 10 board examinations. However, the Jharkhand High Court sanctioned only three months of leave, following which she was transferred to Dumka.

In her representation to the High Court, she had requested that she be allowed to continue in Hazaribagh or be shifted to Ranchi or Bokaro, so that her son’s studies were not disrupted. With her plea unaddressed, she moved the Supreme Court.

After hearing the matter, the apex court ordered that the petitioner be either retained in Hazaribagh or transferred to Bokaro till March-April 2026, by which time her son will have completed his board examinations.

The bench directed the Jharkhand High Court to comply with its order within two weeks.

This is not the first time the matter reached the Supreme Court. Earlier, when the ADJ’s request for child care leave was only partially approved, the top court had sought responses from both the Jharkhand government and the High Court registry.

--IANS

snc/skp/vd