Dehradun, Sept. 26 -- The Uttarakhand High Court has expressed concern over the transfer of a forest officer and his attachment to the forest office in Rudraprayag district, observing that such actions should not be influenced by complaints from politicians. A division bench of Chief Justice G Narendar and Justice Subhash Upadhyay made the remarks while hearing a petition on Wednesday filed by Hemant Bisht, Range Forest Officer of Nandprayag (Chamoli district) , who has challenged his September 12 transfer and attachment order to Rudraprayag as stigmatic and arbitrary. During the hearing, the bench questioned Forest secretary C Ravi Shankar, who said action against Bisht was taken due to lapses in work related to the forthcoming Nanda Devi Yatra, while a complaint by a Gram Pradhan was only "incidental." The court, however, in its order cautioned that if departmental actions were prompted by political complaints, "offices would remain vacant, with officers spending their time at the doorstep of the political class." The secretary admitted such a situation was "not desirable or welcome" and assured the court that the matter would be reviewed. Bisht's counsel argued that the officer was punished without being given a chance to present his case and that vested interests were misusing their influence in forest administration....