Bombay High Court
Gajanan Tukaram Ingle, Buldana vs Committee Of Scrutiny & Caste ... on 21 July, 2017
Bench: Ravi K. Deshpande
wp.1822.02
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
BENCH AT NAGPUR, NAGPUR.
...
WRIT PETITION NO.1822/2002
Gajanan Tukaram Ingle
major, Service in Land Records
at DeulgaonRaja R/o Dongarshewli
Tq. Chikhli, Dist. Buldana. ..PETITIONER
v e r s u s
1) The Committee of Scrutiny and Caste
Verification of Tribe Claims, Amraoti.
2) State of Maharashtra
Through Secretary
Social and Welfare Department
Mantralaya, Bombay-32.
3) Deputy Director,
Land Records, Amraoti Division,
Amraoti. ..RESPONDENTS
...........................................................................................................................
Mr. A.P. Kalmegh, Advocate for the petitioner
Mr. N.S.Rao, Assistant Government Pleader for respondents
............................................................................................................................
CORAM: R.K.DESHPANDE &
MRS . SWAPNA JOSHI, JJ
.
DATE OF RESERVING: 28.06.2017
DATE OF PRONOUNCEMENT:21.07.2017
JUDGMENT: (PER MRS.SWAPNA JOSHI, J.)
By this petition, the petitioner has challenged the decision of
the respondent no.1-Scheduled Tribe Caste Certificate Scrutiny
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Committee, dated 19.11.2001, by which the caste certificate of the
petitioner as belonging to 'Thakur', which is recognized as a Scheduled
Tribe in the State of Maharashtra, is invalidated.
2. The petitioner is working as a Peon in the office of the
Taluqa Inspector of Land Records at Deulgaonraja, Buldana. The caste
certificate issued by the competent Authority in favour of the petitioner
was forwarded to the respondent no.1-Committee for verification, along
with as many as 39 documents. Some of them were of pre-Constitutional
era having probative value, however, the caste claim of the petitioner
was invalidated by the Scrutiny Committee.
3. Shri A.P. Kalmegh, learned counsel for the petitioner
contended that the petitioner had submitted the documents of pre-
Constitutional era in order to show that the petitioner belongs to
'Thakur' Scheduled Tribe. However, those documents were not
considered by the respondent no.1-Committee. The learned counsel
placed reliance upon the Government Resolution dated 22.08.2007
which lays down that if the validity certificate is issued by the
appropriate Authority in favour of any blood relation from paternal side,
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then there is no need to to ask for any other document and the Scrutiny
Committee should complete the inquiry within one month. He further
urged that in respect of his real cousin Chatarsingh, the Divisional
Commissioner, Amravati vide order dated 25.2.1989, has held that he
belongs to 'Thakur' Scheduled Tribe. It is further submitted that since
this Court has directed the Scrutiny Committee to issue validity
certificate to the daughters of Chatarsingh, who is the real cousin of the
petitioner, namely, Vaishali and Rupali in Writ Petition Nos. 2506 and
2505 both of 2005, there is no hurdle in granting validity certificate in
favour of the petitioner. The learned counsel placed reliance upon the
judgment in the case of Apoorva Nichale vs. Divisional Caste Scrutiny
Committee, reported in 2011 (2) BCR 824. Paragraph no.9 thereof,
reads as follows:-
"9............. The matters pertaining to validity of caste have a
great impact on the candidate as well as on the future
generations in many matters varying from marriage to
education and enjoyment (employment), and therefore where a
committee has given a finding about the validity of the caste of
a candidate another committee ought not to refuse the same
status to a blood relative who applies. A merely different view
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on the same facts would not entitle the committee dealing with
the subsequent caste claim to reject it. There is, however, no
doubt as observed by us earlier that if a committee is of the view
that the earlier certificate is obtained by fraud it would not be
bound to follow the earlier caste validity certificate and is
entitled to refuse the caste claim and also in addition initiate
proceedings for cancellation of the earlier order. In this view of
the matter, we are of the view that the petition must succeed.
Rule is made absolute in above terms. The Caste Scrutiny
Committee is directed to furnish the caste validity certificate to
the petitioner."
4. Shri N.S.Rao, the learned Assistant Government Pleader
does not dispute the law laid down in Apoorva's case (supra).
5. Since the claim of 'Thakur' Scheduled Tribe in respect of
blood relations i.e. petitioner's cousin, namely, Chatarsingh has been
validated by the Divisional Commissioner, Amravati, as also the nieces
of the petitioner, who are the daughters of Chatarsingh, namely Vaishali
and Rupali, have been granted validity certificates in view of the order
passed by Division Bench of this Court and in view of authoritative
pronouncement in Apoorva Nichale's case (supra), in our considered
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view, the petitioner is entitled for the reliefs claimed. Hence, the
following order :-
ORDER
(i) The impugned order dated 19.11.2001 passed by the
Scrutiny Committee is hereby quashed and set aside.
(ii) The respondent no.1-Scrutiny Committee is directed to
furnish caste validity certificate in favour of the petitioner in view
of the law laid down by this Court in Apoorva Nichale's case
(supra), within a period of four weeks.
(iii) Rule is made absolute in the aforesaid terms. No costs.
JUDGE JUDGE
sahare
