V.Sailu vs The State Of Telangana
2022 Latest Caselaw 7079 Tel

 THE HONOURABLE SMT JUSTICE P.MADHAVI DEVI

                W.P.No. 32978 of 2022


ORDER:

This writ petition has been filed by the petitioner

seeking a writ of certiorari calling for the records in

relation to the orders passed by the respondent No.1 in

G.O.Ms.No.20, Tribal Welfare (LTR) Department, dated

11.07.2022 filed against the orders passed by the

District Collector in Proceedings No.C1/3056/2016,

dated 13.01.2020 cancelling the caste certificate of the

petitioner i.e., ST (Yanadi) and to declare the orders

passed by the District Magistrate and District Collector

dated 13.01.2020 and the orders passed in

G.O.Ms.No.20 Tribal Welfare (LTR) Department, dated

11.07.2022, as illegal, arbitrary, unconstitutional and

contrary to the judgments of Hon'ble Supreme Court

reported in 2001(1) SCC 4 and the Constitutional Bench

in 2012 (1) SCC 549 and consequently to declare that

PMD,J W.P.No.32978 of 2022

the petitioner is entitled for pension and retirement

benefits in the interests of justice and to pass such other

order or orders as this Hon'ble Court may deem fit and

proper in the circumstances of the case.

2. Brief facts leading to the filing of the present writ

petition are that the petitioner claim that his ancestors

belonged to ST (Yanadi) community of Bapatla area. It is

stated that about 200 years ago, his forefathers migrated

to Hyderabad and that the petitioner was born and

brought up in Hyderabad and studied from 1966 to 1971

at Jawahar Bala Sadan Vidyalaya, Chikkadapally,

Hyderabad and that the bonafide certificate to that

extent has been issued by the school authority, in which

the petitioner's community status is mentioned as ST

(Yanadi). It is submitted that on 08.05.2017, the

Tahasildar has issued community and date of birth

certificate stating that the petitioner belongs to Yanadi

ST Community. Thereafter, petitioner was appointed as a

PMD,J W.P.No.32978 of 2022

Watchman in the 4th respondent College under the

reserved category in the year 1999, on the basis of a

caste certificate issued by the Tahsildar, Amberpet

Mandal and was working as such.

3. It is submitted that one K.Venkata Narayana, State

President, Jana Sankshema Sangham allegedly filed a

complaint on 19.08.2016 stating that the petitioner

obtained false ST Certificate and obtained employment

on the basis of such a certificate. Therefore, the matter

was referred to the Principal, ITI Mallepally, for

verification of records. The Principal, ITI Mallepally,

reported to the District Collector on 20.10.2016 that the

petitioner was appointed as a Watchman under the last

grade services through District Employment Exchange

under ST quota on 22.06.1999. Thereafter, the

Commissioner, Tribal Welfare asked the petitioner to

appear with documentary evidence and the petitioner

has produced all the required certificates. The

PMD,J W.P.No.32978 of 2022

Commissioner, Tribal Welfare, vide his report dated

07.03.2017, observed that the traditional habitation of

Yanadi tribe is Nellore, Chittor, Guntur, Krishna, Kadapa

and Prakasam and since the petitioner is living in

Hyderabad and could not prove that his parents

migrated from Bapatla, Guntur District, he opined that

the petitioner is not a traditional habitant of Yanadi.

Therefore, the petitioner's case was referred to District

Level Scrutiny Committee (DLSC) for enquiry and

thereafter, the Tahasildar has submitted a report stating

that the petitioner belongs to BC(A), Mandula

Community. The District Level Scrutiny Committee

(DLSC) directed the petitioner to appear before them and

submit all the relevant documents and on 12.07.2017,

the DLSC held that the petitioner has obtained ST

(Yanadi) Certificate fraudulently and entered into

Government Service by utilizing ST quota. On the ground

that the petitioner could not establish that his ancestors

PMD,J W.P.No.32978 of 2022

migrated from Bapatla, Guntur District, the committee

held the issue against the petitioner.

4. Learned counsel for the petitioner submitted that

the committee did not give any credence to the school

record as the basis for determining the community of the

petitioner and has given more weightage to the local

enquiry conducted by the Tahsildar, Amberpet and

report submitted by the said authorities on 25.05.2017,

which was obtained behind the back of the petitioner

without giving him any opportunity of representation and

therefore, there is a violation of principles of natural

justice. It is stated that thereafter, a show cause notice

was given by the District Collector, asking the petitioner

to show cause as to why the caste certificate should not

be cancelled by the District Collector. It is submitted that

the objections/comments of the petitioner on the report

of the DLSC was not called for and District Collector has

unanimously and arbitrarily taken a decision to cancel

PMD,J W.P.No.32978 of 2022

the community certificate issued by Tahasildar vide

proceedings dated 13.01.2020. It is submitted that

against the same, the petitioner has filed an appeal

before the respondent No.1 by raising various grounds,

but without considering any of them, the respondent

No.1 has dismissed the appeal, against which, the

present writ petition has been filed.

5. It is submitted that the Hon'ble Supreme Court in

the case of Maharashtra Vs. Milind and Others1, has

declared that the benefit acquired under the caste

certificate issued by the competent authority after a

period of time cannot be taken away and accordingly, in

the case of the petitioner also the benefits granted to the

petitioner almost 25 years ago cannot be taken away. It

is submitted that the petitioner had entered into service

in the year 1999 as a Watchman and retired from service

on attaining the age of superannuation of 61 years i.e.,

in March, 2022 and that the petitioner has rendered 23

1 (2001) 1 SCC 4

PMD,J W.P.No.32978 of 2022

years of service and was retired from service thereafter

and therefore, he shall not be denied the benefits of this

long service only on the ground that the caste certificate

of the petitioner has been cancelled at the fag-end of his

service after 23 years of service. It is submitted that

when the District Collector had issued a show cause

notice dated 13.01.2020, the petitioner had filed Writ

Petition No.7424 of 2020 before this Court and this

Court had directed the respondents not to take further

action based on the show cause notice till the disposal of

the appeal. It is submitted that only on the ground that

the orders of this Court were not communicated to the

respondents, the petitioner was removed from service on

20.08.2020 and thereafter, on 03.09.2020, the said order

was withdrawn and subsequently, the petitioner

continued in service till the date of his retirement, on

attaining the age of superannuation. He therefore,

prayed that Writ of Certiorari may be issued and the

orders of the District Collector dated 13.01.2020

PMD,J W.P.No.32978 of 2022

cancelling the caste certificate of the petitioner be set

aside.

6. Learned counsel for the petitioner has drawn the

attention of this Court to the G.O.Ms.No.20 Tribal

Welfare (LTR) Department, dated 11.07.2022, wherein

after reproducing the contentions of the District Collector

and also the petitioner herein at length, the appeal has

been dismissed in one paragraph and therefore,

according to the learned counsel for the petitioner, there

is no application of mind by the respondent No.1 and

hence the said order has to be set aside. He further

submitted that since the petitioner has rendered 23

years of service and it is only after retirement of service

that the caste certificate has been cancelled, the

petitioner should be given all the retirement benefits as

per his entitlement. For this proposition, he placed

reliance upon the judgments of the Hon'ble Supreme

Court in the case of State of Maharashtra Vs. Milind

PMD,J W.P.No.32978 of 2022

and Others (cited supra) and also in the case of Dattu,

S/o.Namdev Thakur Vs. State of Maharashtra and

Others2.

7. Learned Government Pleader for Social Welfare

supported the impugned orders and submitted that the

petitioner has obtained the ST Yanadi caste certificate

fraudulently and therefore, the benefits enjoyed by the

petitioner cannot be continued. It is submitted that in

view of the fact that the caste certificate has been

cancelled, the petitioner should not be given any further

benefit of pensionary benefits and therefore, he prayed

for dismissal of the writ petition.

8. Having regard to the rival contentions and the

material on record, this Court finds that the petitioner's

caste certificate was issued while he was in school and

the school records clearly demonstrate that it was

recorded as ST (Yanadi) community. At the time of the

2 (2012) 1 SCC 549

PMD,J W.P.No.32978 of 2022

issuance of certificate itself, there is bound to be an

enquiry and no doubt was raised at that stage as regards

the social status of the petitioner. It is seen that it is only

at the behest of a person who complained about the

petitioner obtaining false caste certificate, that the

enquiry has been initiated and only on the ground that

the petitioner could not prove that his forefathers or

ancestors have migrated from Bapatla Town to

Hyderabad, the ST certificate of the petitioner has been

cancelled.

9. As seen from the appellate order, the petitioner has

raised many grounds and has putfourth almost 19

points for arguments, but the respondent No.1 has not

considered any of them, but has summarily rejected the

appeal of the petitioner by one single and a brief

paragraph. On this ground alone, the impugned order is

liable to be set aside. Even on merits, this Court finds

that the petitioner has been enjoying the community

PMD,J W.P.No.32978 of 2022

certificate and his school records also shows the social

status as ST (Yanadi) and this has never been doubted

by any of the authorities till a complaint has been lodged

against him. There is a procedure laid down under the

Telangana (SC, ST & BC's) Issuance of Community,

Nativity and Date of Birth Certificate Rules, 1997,

whereunder the verification has to be done by the

officials of Revenue as well as Social Welfare

Departments. Since the said procedure does not seem to

have been followed in the present case, this Court is

inclined to set aside the order dated 13.01.2020. Since

the ST caste certificate has been restored to the

petitioner, the respondents are directed to make

payment of pension and other retirement benefits to the

petitioner as expeditiously as possible i.e., within a

period of three months from the date of receipt of a copy

of this order.

PMD,J W.P.No.32978 of 2022

10. This writ petition is accordingly allowed. There

shall be no order as to costs.

Miscellaneous petitions, if any, pending in this Writ

Petition, shall stand closed.

____________________________ JUSTICE P.MADHAVI DEVI

Date: 28.12.2022 bak

PMD,J W.P.No.32978 of 2022

THE HONOURABLE SMT JUSTICE P.MADHAVI DEVI

W.P.No. 32978 of 2022

Dated: 28.12.2022

bak