Kaleem Chandraiah Died vs The District Collector, Khammam, ...
2023 Latest Caselaw 2677 Tel

       THE HON'BLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE ALOK ARADHE
                                        AND
        THE HON'BLE SRI JUSTICE N.V.SHRAVAN KUMAR
                               W.A.No.585 of 2009
JUDGMENT: (Per the Hon'ble the Chief Justice Alok Aradhe)

        Heard Mr. Vedula Venkataramana, learned Senior

Counsel, who appeared through video conference and

Mr. P.Ram Prasad, learned Government Pleader for Social

Welfare for the respondents.

2. This intra court appeal is filed against an order

dated 30.03.2009, passed by the learned Single Judge, by which

a writ petition viz., W.P.No.10099 of 2002, preferred by the

appellants, has been dismissed.

3. The parties in this order shall be referred to as per their

ranking before the learned Single Judge.

4. The petitioners filed applications before the Mandal

Revenue Officer, Cherla Mandal, Khammam District (briefly

'the MRO' hereinafter) for grant of Migration -cum- Caste ::2::

Certificates. The MRO made an enquiry and issued Migration

-cum- Caste Certificates to the petitioners on 27.04.2000.

However, the District Collector, Khammam, cancelled the

aforesaid certificates and directed initiation of criminal action

against the petitioners, by an order dated 25.04.2002 inter alia

on the ground that the petitioners are not entitled to issue of

Migration -cum- Caste certificates certifying them as

belonging to Lingadhari Koya/Koya (ST).

5. The petitioners, thereupon, challenged the aforesaid

order passed by the District Collector dated 25.04.2002 in the

writ petition.

6. Learned Single Judge, by an order dated 30.03.2009,

inter alia held that the petitioners are not entitled to issue of

Migration -cum- Caste certificates certifying them as

belonging to Lingadhari Koya/Koya (ST). However, the

petitioners were granted liberty to submit their claim for grant

of Migration -cum- Caste certificates on the basis of any other ::3::

material in support of their claim as persons belonging to

Lingadhari Koya/Koya (ST). The writ petition was,

accordingly, dismissed.

7. In the aforesaid background, this intra court appeal has

been filed.

8. Learned Senior Counsel for the petitioners submits that

the petitioners did not challenge the order passed by the

learned Single Judge dated 30.03.2009 as well as the order

passed by the District Collector dated 25.04.2002 insofar it

pertains to the Migration -cum- Caste certificates issued to

them.

8.1. It is further submitted that the petitioners are assailing

the order passed by the District Collector dated 25.04.2002

only insofar it directs initiation of criminal action against them

under Telangana (SC, ST and BCs) Regulation of Issue of

Community Certificates Act, 1993 (briefly 'the 1993 Act').

::4::

8.2. It is further submitted that the petitioners had applied

for grant of Migration -cum- Caste certificates, pursuant to

which, an enquiry was conducted by the MRO and thereupon,

the Migration -cum- Caste certificates were issued to the

petitioners.

8.3. It is further submitted that the order directing criminal

prosecution of the petitioners is unjustified in the facts and

circumstances of the case.

9. On the other hand, learned Government Pleader for

Social Welfare submitted that Section 10 of the 1993 Act

prescribes the penalties. It is pointed out that

Section 10 of the 1993 Act provides that whosoever obtains a

community certificate by furnishing false information; or file a

false statement; or any other fraudulent means is punishable

for an offence, which shall not be less than six months, but

which may extent upto two years and shall also be liable to pay ::5::

fine, which shall not be less than Rs.1,000/-, but which may

extend upto Rs.5,000/-.

9.1. It is further submitted that the petitioners are guilty of

furnishing false information and therefore have rightly been

ordered to be prosecuted by the District Collector.

10. We have considered the submissions made on both

sides and have perused the record.

11. A Bench of this Court, while entertaining the writ

appeal, had granted an ad interim order on 28.04.2009 with

regard to prosecution of the petitioners. The petitioners had

made an application for grant of Migration -cum- Caste

certificates claiming the status of Lingadhari Koya/Koya (ST).

On the application submitted by the petitioners, an enquiry

was conducted and Migration -cum- Caste certificates were

issued to the petitioners by the MRO on 27.04.2000. The

aforesaid Migration -cum- Caste certificates had been

cancelled by the District Collector, Khammam, by an order ::6::

dated 25.04.2002. The District Collector, Khammam, on the

basis of enquiry report submitted by the Sub-Collector,

Bhadrachalam, has recorded a finding that the ancestors of the

petitioners never lived in Pedamidisileru Village of Cherla

Mandal of Khammam District and the petitioners are not

aware of any language/clan/customs and culture of Lingadhari

Koya/Koya (ST). Therefore, it has been further held that the

petitioners have not been able to adduce any documentary or

oral evidence in support of their claim. Therefore, the order

of the District Collector, Khammam, insofar it directs

cancellation of Migration -cum-Certificates, issued to the

petitioners, is justified.

12. However, in the peculiar facts and circumstances of the

case, we do not find any justification to order criminal action

as per the provisions of 1993 Act.

13. Therefore, the order of the District Collector,

Khammam, dated 25.04.2002, insofar it directs criminal ::7::

prosecution of the petitioners is set aside and the remaining

part of the order insofar it pertains to cancellation of

Migration -cum- Caste certificates issued to the petitioners is

affirmed.

14. The order of dismissal dated 30.03.2009, passed by the

learned Single Judge in W.P.No.10099 of 2002, is modified

accordingly.

15. In the result, the Writ Appeal is disposed of. No costs.

As a sequel, miscellaneous petitions, pending if any,

stand closed.

__________________ ALOK ARADHE, CJ

_______________________ N.V.SHRAVAN KUMAR, J Date: 23.09.2023 LUR