Pranita Balaji Masalge Through ... vs The State Of Maharashtra Through ...
2023 Latest Caselaw 6899 Bom

                                                                          WP6761.2023


          IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE OF BOMBAY
                     BENCH AT AURANGABAD

                      WRIT PETITION NO. 6761 OF 2023

                  PRANITA D/O. BALAJI MASALGE
                            VERSUS
            THE STATE OF MAHARASHTRA AND ANOTHER

                        Advocate for Petitioner : Mr. S.M. Vibhute
                         AGP for Respondents : Mr. S.K. Tambe

                                 CORAM : MANGESH S. PATIL &
                                         SHAILESH P. BRAHME, JJ.

DATE : 12 JULY 2023

PER COURT ( PER : SHAILESH P. BRAHME, J.) :

1. Heard learned counsel for the parties and taken up this

matter for final adjudication with their consent.

2. The petitioner is assailing the judgment and order dated

06 September 2022, passed by the respondent no. 2 - Scrutiny

Committee, invalidating her claim for 'Koli Mahadev' scheduled tribe.

She is relying upon the validity certificate issued to her real brother

Akshay. She has produced on record validity certificate of her father -

Balaji, Prashant, affidavit of father, vigilance report and the order of

High Court dated 01.08.2019, passed in case of Akshay in Writ

Petition No. 9058 of 2019.

3. The Scrutiny Committee rejected her caste claim because

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there were contrary entries in the school record of the blood relatives

denoting caste as 'Koli'. The manipulation of the school record was

noticed in the case of her father - Balaji, Aunt - Shilpa and

Shakuntala. The affinity test was recorded against her.

4. The Scrutiny Committee discarded validity certificate

because Vilas Vitthalrao was first validity holder. Vilas was issued

validity relying on the validities of maternal side relatives. The

validity certificates of remaining validity holders were based upon

Vilas's validity.

5. Learned AGP supports the impugned judgment and order.

He points out that the Scrutiny Committee has proposed to reopen the

case of validity holders. Show cause notices are also issued.

6. It is noticed that the validity certificate of Akshay was

issued in pursuance of order passed by High Court in Writ Petition No.

9058 of 2019.

7. We find that the validity certificate issued to brother -

Akshay can be relied upon. There was no separate vigilance enquiry in

the present matter. The enquiry conducted in Akshay's matter is

considered in the present matter also. We do not find any procedural

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illegality while granting validity certificate to Akshay. In the wake of

said order, it is expedient to adopt same course by directing the

Scrutiny Committee to issue validity certificate conditionally.

8. The impugned judgment and order passed by the Scrutiny

Committee is unsustainable. We, therefore, pass following order :

i. Writ Petition is partly allowed.

ii. The judgment and order dated 06 September 2022,

passed by the Scrutiny Committee, is quash and set

aside.

iii. The Scrutiny Committee shall issue tribe validity

certificate to the petitioner for 'Koli Mahadev'

scheduled tribe within a period of two weeks from

today, on condition that the same shall be subject to the

outcome of the revocation or cancellation of the

validity of the blood relatives of the petitioner as

proposed by the Scrutiny Committee.

iv. The petitioner shall not claim any equity.

( SHAILESH P. BRAHME, J. ) ( MANGESH S. PATIL, J. ) spc/-