1 IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE OF BOMBAY BENCH AT AURANGABAD WRIT PETITION NO.4054 OF 2009 Laxmibai w/o Laxmanrao Kadam Age: 65 Yrs., occu. Agril & Household, R/o Purna, District Parbhani. - PETITIONER VERSUS 1) Mohd. Jaker Mohd. Rahimuddin Age: 35 Yrs., occu. Busness, R/o Purna, Tq. Purna, District Parbhani. 2) The Sub-Divisional Officer, Parbhani, Tq. and District Parbhani. 3) The S.C., S.T., V.J.N.T., D.N.T., N.T., O.B.C. & S.B.C. Caste Certificate Verification Committee, Aurangabad Division, Aurangabad. 4) The State of Maharashtra Through Secretary, Social Welfare Department, Mantralaya, Mumbai-32. 5) The Collector, Parbhani and Election Officer for the Election of President Municipal Council, Purna, District Parbhani. 6) Mahatma Fule Secondary & Higher Secondary School Ahmedpur, Tq.Ahmedpur, 2 District Latur, Through its Headmaster. - RESPONDENTS ***** Mr.GV Patil, Adv. h/for Mr.VD Salunke, Advocate for Petitioner; Mr.VD Sapkal, Adv. for Respondent No.1; Mr.RP Phatke, Addl.GP for Resp.Nos. 2,4 & 5. Mr,US Malte, Adv. for Respondent No.3. Mr.VD Gunale, Adv. for Respondent No.6. ----- CORAM : NARESH H. PATIL & K.U.CHANDIWAL, JJ. DATE : 11th November, 2009. PER COURT : . Rule returnable forthwith and heard finally. 2) By this petition, the petitioner challenges the Order dated 14th February, 2007 passed by the Respondent No.3-Committee, thereby validating the caste claim of the Respondent No.1 belonging to be `Kasab’ (OBC). 3) The Petitioner is an elected member of Municipal Council, Purna, from open category. 3 The respondent no.1 has contested the elections from the reserved (OBC) category. 4) The Caste claim of the respondent no.1 was referred to the Respondent-Caste Scrutiny Committee and the Committee, as stated above, by an order dated 14.2.2007 validated the caste claim of respondent no.1. We have perused the order of the Respondent-Committee. We find that the order passed by the Committee is unreasoned one. On this ground alone, the impugned order passed by the Respondent-Committee is required to be quashed and set aside and the matter is required to be remanded back to the Committee for fresh decision. 5) In this view of the matter, the impugned order dated 14.2.2007 passed by the Respondent No.3 Committee, is quashed and set aside and the matter is remanded back to the Committee with a direction to the Committee to decide the caste claim of the respondent no.1 within a period of 4 two months from the date of receipt of the order. 6) The respondent no.1 shall appear before the Committee on 23.11.2009 at 11.00 a.m. The interested parties would be heard by the Committee. The Committee shall pass a reasoned order on the basis of the evidence already collected and communicate the same to the concerned. All issues are kept open. We express no opinion on the merits of the matter. Rule absolute. (K.U.CHANDIWAL) (NARESH H. PATIL) JUDGE JUDGE bdv/wp4054.09