(1) IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY, AURANGABAD BENCH, AT AURANGABAD. WRIT PETITION NO. 5572 OF 2010 Arvind s/o. Gangadharrao Nalge, Age : 60 years, Occupation : Agriculture, R/o. Nalge Galli, Kandhar, Taluka : Kandhar, District : Nanded. .. Petitioner. versus 1. The State of Maharashtra, Through its Principal Secretary, Social Justice Department, Mantralaya, Mumbai. 2. The Divisional Caste Certificate Scrutiny Committee, Latur. 3. The District Social Welfare Officer, Nanded. .. Respondents. ....................... Mr. M.D. Narwadkar, Advocate, for the petitioner. Mr. K.G. Patil, Assistant Government Pleader, for respondent nos.1, 2 and 3. ........................ (2) CORAM : B.R. GAVAI & A.A. SAYED, JJ. DATE : 25TH OCTOBER 2010 ORAL JUDGMENT (Per B.R. Gavai, J.) : 1. Rule. Rule made returnable forthwith. Heard by consent. 2. The petitioner challenges the order dated 18th August 2009, vide which the respondent no.2 / Committee has refused to consider the case of the petitioner for grant of caste validity certificate. 3. The petitioner claims that he belongs to "Kunbi Maratha" which is notified as Other Backward Class. The proposal of the petitioner, for validity of caste claim, has been disposed of, by the Committee, without verification, only on the ground that the petitioner is not prosecuting any professional course and, as such, it is not necessary to verify the caste claim. 4. We find that the ground, on which the proposal of the petitioner for caste validity is returned, without verification, is erroneous. Merely because the petitioner is not prosecuting any professional course cannot be a ground for returning the (3) proposal for validity of caste claim. In that view of the matter, the petition deserves to be allowed. 5. In the result, the petition is allowed. (i) The impugned order dated 18th August 2009, Exhibit "A", passed by the respondent no.2 / Committee, is quashed and set aside. The matter is remitted back to the respondent no.2 / Committee for deciding it afresh, in accordance with law, after giving reasonable opportunity of hearing to the petitioner. (ii) The petitioner shall appear before the Committee on 20th December 2010 and, as such, requirement of formal notice, by the Committee to the petitioner, shall stand waived. 6. Rule is made absolute in the aforesaid terms. However, there shall be no order as to costs. ( A.A. SAYED ) ( B.R. GAVAI ) JUDGE JUDGE ......................... bgp/wp5572