Bombay High Court
Rohit S/O Sunil Dhakate And Another vs The S. T. Caste Certificate Scrutiny ... on 22 August, 2025
Author: Anil S. Kilor
Bench: Anil S. Kilor
2025:BHC-NAG:8303-DB
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
NAGPUR BENCH, NAGPUR
WRIT PETITION NO.3912/2025
1. Rohit s/o Sunil Dhakate,
Aged about 18 years, Occu.-
Student, R/o at Post Nathnagar,
Tq. Umarkhed, Dist. Yavatmal.
2. Rupal d/o Sunil Dhakate,
Aged about 20 years, Occ.
Student, R/o at Post Nathnagar,
Tq. Umarkhed, Distt. Yavatmal.
... PETITIONERS
...VERSUS...
1. The Scheduled Tribe Caste
Certificate Scrutiny Committee,
through its Member Secretary,
and Deputy Director, Yavatmal.
2. The State Common Entrance Test
Cell, through Commissioner,
8th Floor, New Excelsior Building,
A.K. Nayak Marg, Fort, Mumbai-
400001.
(added as per Court order's dated 14.08.2025.)
...RESPONDENTS
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Shri Ashwin Deshpande, Advocate for petitioners
Ms T.H. Khan, AGP for respondent No.1/State
Shri N.A. Gaikwad, Advocate for respondent No.2
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
CORAM : ANIL S. KILOR AND AJIT B. KADETHANKAR, JJ..
DATED : 22.08.2025
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ORAL JUDGMENT (ANIL S. KILOR J.)
. Rule. Rule made returnable forthwith. Heard learned
Counsel for the respective parties.
2. The petitioners are real brother and sister and they are
claiming that they belong to the caste 'Halbi' Scheduled Tribe. The
challenge raised in this writ petition is to the invalidation of the
caste claim vide common order dated 30.05.2024.
3. Having gone through the record, it is evident that Anil
Dhakate is the real uncle of the petitioners and there is no dispute
about the relation. There is no dispute about this fact that Anil
Dhakate was granted validity as 'Halbi' Scheduled Tribe, in
compliance with the judgment of this Court dated 04.07.2019. In
Writ Petition No.5400/2004, Anil Madhavrao Dhakate Vs. State of
Maharashtra and others, this Court while considering the claim of
the real uncle of the petitioner Anil Dhakate has relied upon the
pre-independence document and recorded the following finding:
"2. We have gone through the impugned order.
The impugned order rejects four pre-constitutional
documents, all of them relate to birth registration in
respect of three male children and one female child
born to one Balaji Santoba. The first child was a male
child who has been shown to be born on
02/07/1940. The second child was also a male and
has been shown to be born on 07/01/1943. the third
offspring was a female child, who has been shown to
be born on 29/09/1945. The forth pre-constitutional
document is in the name of Narayan Santoba and it is
the birth registration of male child born on
05/07/1945. In all these four documents, admittedly,
the caste shown is 'Halbi'. The relationship of Balaji
Santoba and Narayan Santoba that of grandfather
and cousin grandfather from the paternal side of the
petitioner, was never in dispute. The Scrutiny
Committee, however, rejected these documents only
on the ground that there was no mention of the
words "Scheduled Tribe" or the work 'Tribe" in these
four documents."
4. From the above referred observation of this Court, it is
evident that this Court has relied upon four entries of pre-
independence that the entries dated 02.07.1940, 07.01.1943,
29.09.1945 and 05.07.1945.
5. The same entries were relied upon by the petitioners to
support the caste claim. However, all four entries were discarded by
the Committee on the ground that no document is produced to
establish the relations of the petitioners with the persons relating to
whom such entries are. It is surprising to note that in the case of
Anil Dhakare before this Court, the relations were not disputed with
the persons to whom the above referred entries are. If the
petitioners are related with Anil Dhakate, the Scrutiny Committee
cannot be allowed to take contrary stand and dispute the relations
of the petitioners with those persons.
6. In the circumstances, the Committee has committed
error and discarded four entries which are having higher
evidenciary value because of pre-independence period entries. The
another ground is that during the vigilance sell, the entry relating to
Narayan vald Santoba i.e. cousin great-grandfather of the
petitioners was found having caste recorded as 'Marathi'. This
ground is not sufficient to invalidate the caste claim. In the case of
Vilas Dinkar Bhat Vs. State of Maharashtra and others reported in
2021 (2) Mh.L.J. 385, this Court has observed that the caste
recorded as 'Marathi' is not a caste but a language and, therefore,
the document or the entries showing the caste as 'Marathi' cannot
be considered as adverse to the petitioners' claim.
7. In the above referred backdrop and on both the counts,
the impugned order invalidating caste claim of the petitioners do
not sustain in the eyes of law. Furthermore, considering the four
entries of pre-independence period, which supports the caste claim
of the petitioners, the validity of the real uncle of the petitioners is
in favour of the petitioners and, therefore, we are of the opinion
that the Writ petition needs to be allowed and the Caste Scrutiny
Committee be directed to issue validity certificate to the petitioners
as 'Halbi' Scheduled Tribe. Accordingly, we pass the following order:
ORDER
i) The Writ Petition is allowed.
ii) The order of invalidation dated 30.05.2024 is hereby quashed
and set aside.
iii) The respondent-Caste Scrutiny Committee is directed to issue
validity certificate to the petitioners at the earliest and in any case,
within 15 days from the date of the order.
iv) In view of the order, the respondent No.2 shall not cancel the
admission of the petitioners in view of the observations made
herein above.
8. Writ Petition is disposed of in above terms.
9. Copy of the order duly authenticated by Personal
Assistant, be given to the parties to act upon.
(AJIT B. KADETHANKAR, J.) (ANIL S. KILOR, J.)
R.S. Sahare
Signed by: Mrs. Ranjana Sahare
Designation: PA To Honourable Judge
Date: 22/08/2025 17:53:54
