Bombay High Court
Sambhaji Malbarao More vs State Of Maharashtra And Others on 29 September, 2021
Bench: Mangesh S. Patil
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
BENCH AT AURANGABAD
WRIT PETITION NO.12344 OF 2019
Sambhaji s/o Malbarao More,
Age : 52 years, Occu. Service,
R/o Murtizapur Savangi, Tq. Aundha-
Nagnath, District Hingoli PETITIONER
VERSUS
1. State of Maharashtra,
through Principal Secretary,
Home Department,
Mantralaya, Mumbai
2. Scheduled Tribe Certificate
Scrutiny Committee,
Aurangabad Region, Aurangabad
Plot No.10, E-9, Opp. CIDCO Bus Stand,
Aurangabad, Dist. Aurangabad,
through its Member Secretary
3. Superintendent of Police,
Hingoli, District Hingoli RESPONDENTS
AND
WRIT PETITION NO. 12354 OF 2019
Malbarao s/o Sambhaji More,
Age : 22 years, Occu. Education,
represented through his father
Sambhaji s/o Malbarao More,
Age : 52 years, Occu. Service,
R/o Murtizapur Savangi, Tq.
Aundha Nagnath, Dist. Hingoli PETITIONER
VERSUS
1. Scheduled Tribe Certificate
Scrutiny Committee,
Aurangabad Region, Aurangabad
Plot No.10, E-9, Opp. CIDCO Bus Stand,
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Aurangabad, Dist. Aurangabad,
through its Member Secretary
2. Maharashtra University of Health
Sciences, Nashik,
Vani Dindori Road, Nashik,
through its Registrar
3. Samarth Educational Trust
Sawkar Homeopathy
Medical College, Devgaon Road,
Satara, District Satara,
through its Principal RESPONDENTS
AND
WRIT PETITION NO. 12384 OF 2019
Aishwarya d/o Sambhaji More,
Age : 18 years, Occu. Education,
represented through her father
Sambhaji s/o Malbarao More,
Age : 52 years, Occu. Service,
R/o Murtizapur Savangi, Tq.
Aundha Nagnath, Dist. Hingoli PETITIONER
VERSUS
1. Scheduled Tribe Certificate
Scrutiny Committee,
Aurangabad Region, Aurangabad
Plot No.10, E-9, Opp. CIDCO Bus Stand,
Aurangabad, Dist. Aurangabad,
through its Member Secretary
2. Aditya Diploma Institute of
Pharmacy College, Beed,
District Beed,
through its Principal RESPONDENTS
----
Mr. Mahesh S. Deshmukh, Advocate holding for Mr. Sagar S. Phatale,
Advocate for the petitioners
Mr. P.S. Patil, A.G.P. for the respondents in writ petition No.12344/2019
and for respondent No.1 in other two writ petitions
None present for respondent Nos.2 and 3 in writ petition No.12354/2019
----
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CORAM : DIPANKAR DATTA, CJ &
MANGESH S. PATIL, J.
DATE : 29.09.2021
P.C. :
1. These three writ petitions are directed against the common
judgment and order dated 30.08.2019, passed by the Scheduled Tribe
Certificate Verification Committee, Aurangabad Division, Aurangabad
(hereafter "the Verification Committee", for short) delivered in exercise of
powers conferred by Section 7 of Maharashtra Act No.23 of 2001. By the
impugned judgment and order, the petitioners' caste claims have been
invalidated.
2. The writ petitions are at the instance of a father, his son and
daughter. They claim to belong to `koli mahadeo' tribe. Reliance was
placed by the petitioners on multiple documents to support their claim that
they do belong to the said tribe. The Verification Committee, however, has
disbelieved the claim of the petitioners and while relying on the report of
the Police Inspector, Vigilance Squad, Verification Committee, which was
forwarded to the petitioners along with the show-cause notice dated
06.10.2018, has proceeded to pass the order of invalidation.
3. In our view, the writ petitions ought to succeed on a short point.
Inter alia, reliance was placed by the petitioners before the Verification
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Committee on a particular document, which is a revenue record relating
back to 1953-54 (hereafter "the said revenue record", for short). Mr.
Deshmukh, learned advocate for the petitioners, contends that it would be
evident from the said revenue record that under the name of Malbarao
Malharrao, i.e., the father of the petitioner in W.P. No.12344/2019 and the
grandfather of the other two petitioners, `koli mahadeo' tribe is written.
According to him, this was the oldest document among all documents and
the clinching evidence to return a finding in favour of the petitioners that
their ancestors belonged to `koli mahadeo' tribe. He has taken us through
the entirety of the impugned judgment and order to urge that the said
revenue record was not even considered by the Verification Committee
while delivering its judgment and order.
4. Mr. Patil, learned A.G.P. appearing for the respondents, however, has
drawn our attention to paragraph 7 (iii) of the impugned judgment to
contend that the said document was duly considered by the Verification
Committee.
5. Having perused the impugned judgment and order, we are of the
view that apart from reference to the said revenue record at paragraph 3
(to the effect that the petitioners had relied on it) and paragraph 7(iii), as
noted above, the Verification Committee has not dealt with the said
revenue record at all. Even from the report of the Police Inspector,
Vigilance Squad, we find that there was absolutely no adverse comment
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made by him with regard to the said revenue record.
6. In a case of the present nature, the writ court is not supposed
to sit in appeal over the judgment of the Verification Committee. The
power of judicial review which the Constitution confers on high courts
would, however, be available, but on limited grounds, such as, (i) the
order is passed without considering or discarding relevant material, (ii) the
order is based on consideration of extraneous matters, (iii) in making the
order, a document or any evidence has been considered without giving
access to the affected party or putting him on notice, (iv) the conclusions
arrived at in the order are based on `no evidence', and (v) the order is
made in violation of the principles of natural justice. In all such cases,
where an order is found to suffer from an infirmity on the existence of
either one or more of the above situations and a case of grave and
substantial prejudice is set up, the same can and ought to be interdicted on
the ground of being perverse. We find that the first situation is satisfied in
the present case inasmuch as despite the petitioners having submitted the
said revenue record for consideration of the Verification Committee, there
is no consideration worth the name. In paragraph 7 (iii), there is a
reference that the said revenue record has been considered but no reason
has been assigned as to why such document was not found to be
creditworthy and thus, did not appeal to the Verification Committee for
acceptance. This is a glaring error in the decision-making process, which
strikes at the root and renders the ultimate judgment and order vulnerable.
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7. Mr. Patil in the midst of hearing was heard to submit that the
Verification Committee had to rush through the proceedings since the
educational career of the petitioner in W.P. No.12354/2019 rested on such
Committee's decision. This submission does not impress us at all. Apart
from being factually incorrect (we have satisfied ourselves that the
Verification Committee had sufficient time to decide the claims), rushing
through proceedings of the present nature is neither advisable nor
desirable. The Verification Committee has an onerous duty to discharge. It
is a quasi-judicial authority having jurisdiction to decide rights of parties
claiming to belong to the socially and economically backward classes.
Each and every party, unsuccessful before the Verification Committee, may
not have the resources to carry its decision to the High Court for a judicial
review. In such circumstances, it is all the more necessary that decisions
are rendered by it upon threadbare consideration of all the materials
before it and not in any slipshod manner.
8. Be that as it may, for the foregoing reasons, we have no option but to
set aside the impugned judgment and order and remit the matter to the
appropriate jurisdictional Verification Committee for re-consideration of
the petitioners' claim on the basis of all available material, including the
said revenue record. It is ordered accordingly. Let an appropriate decision
be taken by such committee, upon further verification of the said revenue
record by a competent police inspector. If the material collected by such
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police officer is adverse to the claim of the petitioners, they must be given
access to the same for placing their version before the Verification
Committee.
9. Having regard to the fact that one of the petitioners is a student and
had been admitted to a Homeopathy medical course, as a reserved
candidate, we encourage the Verification Committee to expedite its
decision. It would be desirable if compliance of this order is effected as
early as possible but not later than four months from date of its receipt.
Needless to observe, any advantage derived by the petitioners pursuant to
the tribe certificates, since invalidated but which stand revived in terms of
this order, shall be subject to and abide by the decision of the Verification
Committee to be rendered in terms hereof.
10. After the above order is dictated, Mr. Deshmukh brings to our notice
that the direction contained in paragraph 9 of the order dated 05.04.2021,
passed in W.P. No.12354/2019 has not been complied with by the
respondent no.3. If indeed that be so, we direct such respondent to issue
an internship completion certificate to the said petitioner with an
endorsement that the same is 'provisional'. In the event the petitioner
succeeds in the proceedings before the Verification Committee, he may
approach the respondent no.3 for deletion of the endorsement
`provisional' and if such approach is made, appropriate action be taken.
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11. The writ petitions stand disposed of. No costs.
[MANGESH S. PATIL, J.] [CHIEF JUSTICE]
npj/WP12344-2019+.odt
