Tribunal’s suspension of Mausooma’s transfer paused as High Court issues interim stay

The High Court has stayed the Employment Tribunal’s order halting the transfer of a senior employee of the Department of Judicial Administration (DJA) to the judiciary’s archive facility in Vilimale’.

The employee is Mausooma Farooq, a Legal Counsel at the DJA’s Legal Department. The appeal stems from a case she filed with the Employment Tribunal after she was abruptly transferred to the Vilimale’ archive in May.

Case documents show Mausooma was reassigned while she was on leave, during a period when then-Chief Judicial Administrator Amjad Musthafa had resigned and two senior DJA staff members were suspended.

In May, Mausooma lodged a complaint with the Employment Tribunal, which issued an interim order suspending the transfer until the case is decided. The DJA appealed the interim order at the High Court, while Mausooma separately applied to the Civil Court to enforce the Tribunal’s ruling.

After hearings began last week, the High Court on Wednesday issued an order staying the Tribunal’s interim decision.

During proceedings, the bench questioned the DJA extensively. Judges asked about the contents of the email notifying Mausooma of her transfer and what steps the department had taken to comply with the Tribunal’s order.

The bench repeatedly sought clarification on the legal basis for the transfer, instructing the DJA to submit the formal written decision authorising the reassignment. Judges also asked how the DJA justified seeking a fresh order from the High Court while an interim ruling was already in force.

The court further questioned the DJA’s claim that the transfer was “temporary,” asking for the intended duration, whether Mausooma had been consulted beforehand, and whether the change in duties was formally documented.

Judges also examined the nature of the work assigned at the archive and asked whether Mausooma’s professional experience, academic qualifications and legal expertise had been considered before the transfer.

The DJA has filed a case against Mausooma at the High Court seeking to suspend enforcement of the Tribunal’s interim ruling. The High Court has not yet issued a final decision.