- 1 - IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY BENCH AT AURANGABAD WRIT PETITION NO. 5865/2010 Shahaji s/o Lalu Surewad, age 22 yrs., occu.education, r/o Degloor Tq.Degloor Dist.Nanded. Through Power of Attorney Holder, Shri Suresh s/o Gangaram Dubbalwar, age 40 yrs., occu.agri., r/o as above. ...Petitioner.. Versus 1] The State of Maharashtra, through Secretary to Tribal Development Department, Mantralaya, Mumbai. 2] The Scheduled Tribe Caste Certificate Verification Committee, Aurangabad, through its Dy.Director (R), Aurangabad. 3] The Sub Divisional Officer, Degloor, Dist.Nanded. ...Respondents... ..... Shri S.M. Vibhute, Advocate for petitioner. Shri K.J. Ghute Patil, AGP for respondent nos.1 & 3. - 2 - Shri U.S. Malte, Advocate for respondent no.2. ..... CORAM: P.V. HARDAS & N.D. DESHPANDE, JJ. DATE: 06.07.2010 ORAL JUDGMENT (Per Hardas, J.): 1] Heard learned counsel for the parties. 2] Rule. Rule made returnable forthwith. With the consent of learned counsel for the parties, this petition is heard finally at the stage of admission. 3] By this petition, the petitioner impugns the order passed by the Sub Divisional Officer, Degloor, dated 5.12.2009 rejecting the application of the petitioner and the order passed by the respondent no.2 – scrutiny committee in the appeal dated 31.12.2009 dismissing the appeal filed by the petitioner. 4] The petitioner who was desirous of obtaining a caste certificate as belonging to Mahadev Koli – scheduled tribe, applied to the Sub Divisional Officer, Degloor, by placing reliance upon the caste validity certificate issued in favour of the real brother of the petitioner. The Sub Divisional Officer rejected the said application on the ground that in the census, the caste of the grand-father of the petitioner was - 3 - recorded as “Koli”. According to us, the aforesaid reason for rejecting the application of the petitioner is only unsustainable in law. At the stage of preliminary inquiry, the Sub Divisional Officer ought to have been guided by the fact that the real brother of the petitioner has been issued with the validity certificate. 5] In the result, we allow the writ petition, quash and set aside the impugned orders and direct the Sub Divisional Officer, Degloor, to forthwith issue caste certificate to the petitioner as belonging to Mahadev Koli – scheduled tribe. Rule made absolute accordingly. No order as to costs. (N.D. Deshpande, J.) (P.V. Hardas, J.) ndk/c67109