Bombay High Court
Pranjal Pavankumar Gattuwar Through ... vs The Scheduled Tribe Certificate ... on 7 August, 2024
Author: Mangesh S. Patil
Bench: Mangesh S. Patil
2024:BHC-AUG:17780-DB
1 943.WP-7853-2024.doc
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
BENCH AT AURANGABAD
Writ Petition No. 7853 OF 2024
Pranjal d/o Pavankumar Gattuwar
Age 17 years, Occu. Education,
Through Natural Guardian i.e. Father
Pavankumar s/o Sayanna Gattuwar
Age : 47 years, Occ.: Service,
R/o : Kundalwadi, Tq. Biloli
Dist. Nanded. ...Petitioner
Versus
Scheduled Tribe Certificate Scrutiny
Committee, Kinwat,
Headquarter at Aurangabad.
ThroughMember Secretary. ...Respondents
___
Senior Advoate Mr. P.R. Katneshwarkar i/by Mr. S.S.
Phatale, Advocate for the Petitioner.
Mr. A.R. Kale, Addl.GP for Respondent/State.
___
CORAM : MANGESH S. PATIL &
SHAILESH P. BRAHME, JJ..
DATE : 07 AUGUST 2024
FINAL ORDER [Per: Shailesh P. Brahme, J.] :
. We propose to decide this petition finally at the admission
stage considering exigency.
2. The petitioner is challenging judgment and order dated
05.07.2024 passed by the Scrutiny Committee, confiscating and
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invalidating her tribe certificate of 'Mannervarlu' Scheduled Tribe.
She seeks to rely on the validity certificates of Krushna,
Narendra and Mahesh.
3. Learned Senior Counsel Mr. P.R. Katneshwarkar for the
petitioner submits that Krushna was issued with validity
certificate after following due procedure of law. Mahesh
Damanna Guttuwar was issued with validity certificate by
intervention of the High Court in Writ Petition No.14100/2023.
He would also tender on record order passed in the matter of
Kumari Yashda daughter of Rajesh Guttuwar in Writ Petition
No.14772/2017 to buttress that a validity granted to Mahesh
was relied in granting validity certificate. The validities relied by
the petitioner are reliable in view of ratio laid down by the
Supreme Court in the matter of Maharashtra Adiwasi Thakur
Jamat Swarakshan Samiti Vs. State of Maharashtra and Ors.,
2023 SCC Online SC 326. Hence it is submitted by the learned
Counsel that petition is bound to succeed.
4. Learned AGP tenders on record original papers of first
validity holder - Krushna Venkanna Guttuwar. He would
vehemently submits that the school record of close relatives of
the petitioner, Hanmanlu, Narsimalu, Damanna and Nagmini is
compatible with the caste claim. The Committee noticed
tempering of record in the matter of Venkat, Laxman, Narsimalu
and Damanna. He would submit that validity certificate of
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Krushna is liable to be discarded particularly when in his case
the validity holders were not his paternal side relatives.
5. Having heard both the sides, we find that there is no
dispute about the relationship of the petitioner with the validity
holders. As can be seen from genealogy, there are number of
validity holders in the family. Krushna, being the first validity
holder was referred to and relied upon in the subsequent claims.
Amongst them Mahesh, was issued with validity certificate by
order dated 18.12.2023 passed in Writ Petition No.14100/2023.
6. It reveals from original papers of validity holder Krushna
that there was vigilance inquiry. His vigilance report was
considered by the Committee. He was granted validity certificate
by a reasoned order. Learned Senior Counsel Mr. P.R.
Katneshwarkar rightly submitted that in view of law laid down by
the Supreme Court in the matter of Maharashtra Adiwasi Thakur
Jamat Swarakshan Samiti (supra), validity of Krushna needs to
be followed.
7. We have gone through the order passed in the matter of
Mahesh (supra). The selfsame record has already been
considered by us in granting validity certificate conditionally. We
propose to adopt the same reasons and the course in the case in
hand. Additionally, we are shown order passed by us in the
matter of Yashda (supra) which refers to order passed in the
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matter of Mahesh (supra). We are of the firm view that the
petitioner is entitled to receive validity certificate conditionally.
8. As pointed out by the learned AGP, in the matter of
Krushna, validity certificates of Sainath and Nagesh were relied
upon. It was specifically mentioned that they were maternal side
relatives. It is not a case of suppression of relationship. Rather,
there is candid disclosure of maternal side relation. On this
count, validity issued to Krushna cannot be faulted with.
9. Petitioner is ready to run the risk as per the judgment
rendered in the matter of Shweta Balaji Isankar Vs. the State of
Maharashtra and Others, in Writ Petition No.5611/2018.
Impugned judgment and order is liable to be quashed and set
aside. We, therefore, pass following order :
ORDER
a. The writ petition is allowed partly.
b. The judgment and order dated 05.07.2024 passed
by the Scrutiny Committee is quashed and set aside.
c. The Scrutiny Committee shall issue tribe validity
certificate of 'Mannervarlu' scheduled tribe to the
petitioner forthwith. The same shall be subject to the
outcome of re-verification proposed by the Scrutiny
Committee.
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d. The petitioner shall not be entitled to claim equities.
SHAILESH P. BRAHME MANGESH S. PATIL
JUDGE JUDGE
Najeeb..
