Dinesh S/O Laxmanrao Dandekar vs The S. T. Certificate Scrutiny ...
2022 Latest Caselaw 9532 Bom

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     IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
               NAGPUR BENCH : NAGPUR
               WRIT PETITION NO.3355/2022
Mr. Dinesh S/o Laxmanrao Dandekar,
aged about 52 Yrs., Occ. Service,
R/o Near Durga Devi Mandir, Mahasul
Nagar, Waghapur, Yavatmal, Dist. Yavatmal. ...         Petitioner
      - Versus -
1. The Scheduled Tribe Certificate Scrutiny
    Committee, Amravati, Opposite of Office
    of State Information Commission,
    Chaprashipura, Amravati.
2.   Secretary, Regional Service Selection Board,
     Amravati Region, office at Akola.
3.   Superintending Engineer, Yavatmal Irrigation
     Project Board, Yavatmal, Dist. Yavatmal.
4.   Deputy Superintending Engineer, Yavatmal
     Irrigation Project Board, Yavatmal,
     Dist. Yavatmal.
5.   Executive Engineer, Yavatmal Medium
     Irrigation Project, Yavatmal,
     Dist. Yavatmal.
6.   Sub-Divisional Engineer, Minor
     Irrigation / Construction Sub-Division
     No.2, Yavatmal, Dist. Yavatmal.            ...   Respondents

           -----------------
Mr. Ananta Ramteke, Advocate for the Petitioner.
Ms. N.P. Mehta, Assistant Government Pleader for Respondent
No.1.
Mr. T.M. Zaheer, Advocate for respondent Nos.5 and 6.
           ----------------
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            CORAM : SUNIL B. SHUKRE AND
                    G.A. SANAP, JJ.

DATE : 20.9.2022

ORAL JUDGMENT (Per Sunil B. Shukre, J.)

Heard. Rule. Rule made returnable forthwith.

Heard finally by consent of learned counsel for the parties.

2. In a consistent line of precedents set by us, this Court

has declared that the caste or tribe validity certificate issued to a

family member from paternal side of the petitioner serves as a

satisfactory proof of the social status of the petitioner claiming to

be belonging to a backward class, unless certificate has been found

to be obtained by playing fraud or misrepresenting the facts or

suppressing the material facts.

3. In the present case, the tribe certificate issued to Anil

Laxmanrao Dandekar, real brother of the petitioner, was validated

by the Nagpur Scrutiny Committee on the directions of the

Supreme Court of India in Special Leave Petition No.19966/2003

arising out of Writ Petition No.959/2022 on 11.6.2003. It is not 3 wp3355.2022

the case of anybody that Anil Laxmanrao Dandekar was issued

tribe validity certificate on the basis of fraud played by him or

misrepresentation or suppression of material facts by him.

4. We, therefore, see no justification in the Scrutiny

Committee refusing to accept this certificate as a reasonable proof

of social status claimed by the petitioner. The Amravati Scrutiny

Committee could not have rejected the certificate on the specious

ground that it was issued by the Nagpur Scrutiny Committee on

the directions of the Supreme Court of India, without making due

enquiry. Giving such a reason for rejecting tribe validity

certificate of a paternal relative amounts to an act which is not

only disrespectful to the law declared by the Supreme Court,

which is binding on all the authorities across India, but is also

contemptuous of authority of the Supreme Court of India. Such

refusal by the Scrutiny Committee of Amravati cannot be

sustained by this Court. The tribe validity certificate held by Anil

Laxmanrao Dandekar, in our opinion, is a reasonable proof of the

social status claimed by the petitioner and, therefore, the 4 wp3355.2022

petitioner is entitled to have validated his tribe claim by the

Amravati Scrutiny Committee. In the result, the petition is

allowed in terms of prayer clauses (I) and (II) which read as

follows:-

"I) Quash and set aside the order dated 15.09.2021 (Annexure-D) passed by respondent No.1 Scrutiny Committee, Amravati.

II) Hold and declare that the claim of the petitioner for "Mana" Scheduled Tribe is valid and direct the respondent No.1 Committee to issue caste (sic : tribe) validity certificate to the petitioner immediately."

5. Scrutiny Committee is directed to issue tribe validity

certificate of Mana Scheduled Tribe to the petitioner within a

period of two weeks from the date of receipt of the order.

6. Rule is made absolute in the above terms. No costs.

                               (G.A. SANAP, J.)              (SUNIL B. SHUKRE, J.)



                        Tambaskar.
Signed By:NILESH VILASRAO
TAMBASKAR
Private Secretary
Date:21.09.2022 14:53