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IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
NAGPUR BENCH AT NAGPUR
WRIT PETITION NO.6499/2013
PETITIONER : Jyoti d/o Narayanrao More,
(after marriage Jyoti Vijay Ingle),
aged about 40 years, Occu : Service,
R/o Bhawani Vesh, At Post Daryapur,
District - Amravati.
...VERSUS...
RESPONDENTS: 1. The Scheduled Tribe Caste Scrutiny Committee,
through its Secretary, Irwin Chowk, Amravati.
2. The Head Master, Gayabai Raut Vidyalaya,
Yeoda, Tahsil Daryapur, Distt. Amravati.
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Shri R.S. Parsodkar, Advocate for petitioner
Shri H.R. Dhumale, AGP for respondent no.1
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CORAM : SMT. VASANTI A NAIK AND
ARUN D. UPADHYE, JJ.
DATE : 28.06.2017 ORAL JUDGMENT (PER : SMT. VASANTI A. NAIK, J.) By this petition, the petitioner challenges the order of the Scrutiny Committee dated 9.10.2013 invalidating the claim of the petitioner of belonging to Thakur Scheduled Tribe.
The petitioner claims to belong to Thakur Scheduled Tribe. The petitioner secured a caste certificate to the said effect from the Executive Magistrate, Akola on 22.9.1988. The caste certificate of the ::: Uploaded on - 30/06/2017 ::: Downloaded on - 01/07/2017 00:59:35 ::: wp6499.13.odt 2 petitioner was referred to the Scrutiny Committee for verification. The petitioner tendered several documents before the Scrutiny Committee in support of her caste claim. The Scrutiny Committee, however, rejected the caste claim of the petitioner after holding that the petitioner was not able to prove the same on the basis of documents and affinity test. The order of the Scrutiny Committee is challenged by the petitioner in the instant petition.
Shri Parsodkar, the learned Counsel for the petitioner submitted that the Scrutiny Committee was not justified in rejecting the caste claim of the petitioner though the petitioner had tendered voluminous documents on record in support of her caste claim. It is submitted that in the old documents pertaining to the grandfather and the great grandfather of the petitioner "Thakur" was recorded in the caste column. It is submitted that the Scrutiny Committee ought to have granted due weightage to the old documents of the pre-independence era to hold that the petitioner belongs to Thakur Scheduled Tribe. It is submitted that during the pendency of the writ petition, the writ petition filed by the real brother of the petitioner by name Manoj Narayanrao More was decided and this Court has, by the judgment dated 14.10.2014 allowed the writ petition and held that Manoj Narayanrao More belongs to Thakur Scheduled Tribe. It is submitted that after allowing the said ::: Uploaded on - 30/06/2017 ::: Downloaded on - 01/07/2017 00:59:35 ::: wp6499.13.odt 3 writ petition, this Court had directed the Scrutiny Committee to grant a caste validity certificate of Thakur Scheduled Tribe to Manoj Narayanrao More who is the real brother of the petitioner. It is submitted that in view of the declaration granted by this Court in respect of the real brother of the petitioner, the prayer made by the petitioner needs to be granted by setting aside the order of the Scrutiny Committee.
Shri Dhumale, the learned Assistant Government Pleader appearing on behalf of the Scrutiny Committee supported the order of the Scrutiny Committee. It is submitted that though "Thakur" was recorded in the caste column in the documents pertaining to the blood relatives of the petitioner, the petitioner had failed to prove that the petitioner belongs to Thakur Scheduled Tribe and not Thakur caste. It is fairly stated on instructions from the Scrutiny Committee that Manoj Narayanrao More who had filed Writ Petition No.2984/2003 is the real brother of the petitioner and a caste validity certificate is issued by the Scrutiny Committee in favour of Manoj More on 9.12.2014. The learned Assistant Government Pleader stated that an appropriate order may be passed in the circumstances of the case.
In view of the judgment in the writ petition filed by Manoj Narayanrao More, it would be necessary to allow this writ petition also. This Court has, after considering the various documents tendered by ::: Uploaded on - 30/06/2017 ::: Downloaded on - 01/07/2017 00:59:35 ::: wp6499.13.odt 4 Manoj Narayanrao More who is admittedly the real brother of the petitioner, held that Manoj Narayanrao More has proved his claim of belonging to Thakur Scheduled Tribe. This Court has, after considering the caste validity certificates issued in favour of the relatives of Manoj More, held that Manoj More had proved his claim of belonging to Thakur Scheduled Tribe. On an appreciation of the material available in the case of Manoj Narayanrao More which is similar to the material tendered by the petitioner herein before the Scrutiny Committee, this Court has directed the Scrutiny Committee by the judgment in the case of Manoj More to issue a caste validity certificate in his favour. If that is so, on parity, it would be necessary to pass a similar order in this writ petition also and direct the Scrutiny Committee to issue a caste validity certificate that the petitioner belongs to Thakur Scheduled Tribe.
Hence, for the reasons aforesaid and also for the reasons recorded in the judgment dated 14.10.2014 in Writ Petition No.2984/2003, this writ petition is allowed. The impugned order of the Scrutiny Committee is quashed and set aside. It is hereby held that the petitioner belongs to Thakur Scheduled Tribe. The Scrutiny Committee is directed to issue a validity certificate to the petitioner that she belongs to Thakur Scheduled Tribe, within two months.
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wp6499.13.odt 5 Rule is made absolute in the aforesaid terms with no order as to costs.
JUDGE JUDGE
Wadkar
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