1 srk wp-L-2883-10.sxw IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY ORDINARY ORIGINAL CIVIL JURISDICTION WRIT PETITION (LODGING) NO.2883 OF 2010 Shweta Kesarinath Shivdikar ... Petitioner Versus State of Maharashtra and others. ... Respondents Mr. A.Y. Sakhare, Senior Advocate i/by Mr. K.N. Kandekar for the petitioner. Ms. Geeta Joglekar for respondent No.3. Mr. S.B. Shetye for respondent No.4. Ms. Geeta Shastri, Assistant Government Pleader for respondent Nos.1 and 2. CORAM : MOHIT S. SHAH, C.J. & S.J. VAZIFDAR, J. Monday, January 17, 2011 P .C. The petitioner secured admission to medical course on the basis that the petitioner belonged to Mahadeo Koli tribe which is a scheduled tribe. The petitioner was granted admission to the said post on that basis on 27th September, 2003 subject to the petitioner producing the Caste Scrutiny Certificate issued by the Caste Scrutiny Committee. 2. On 5th December, 2003, the Caste Scrutiny Committee invalidated the caste certificate obtained by the petitioner and the petitioner challenged the said decision of the committee in Writ Petition No.181 of 2004 on 20th March, 2006 and the matter was remanded back to the Committee. Again, the Caste Scrutiny Committee held on 22nd February, 2007 that the petitioner had not 2 srk wp-L-2883-10.sxw proved that she belonged to Mahadeo Koli caste. The petitioner challenged the said order in Writ Petition No.1207 of 2007 which came to be dismissed by judgment and order dated 11th January, 2010, at Exhibit `L' to the petition. 3. All contentions sought to be raised in the present petition came to be considered by another Division Bench of this Court including the contention that in the intervening period, the petitioner had spent long time and also money on pursuing the MBBS course and which would become a waste if her degree is not protected. The Division Bench, however, declined to grant protection after considering the several decisions of the Apex Court. Ultimately, the Division Bench after referring to the provisions of the Maharashtra Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, De-notified Tribes (Vimukta Jatis) Nomadic Tribes, Other Backward Classes and Special Backward Category (Regulations of Issuance and Verification of Caste Certificate) Act, 2000, held that a degree, diploma or educational qualification acquired by a person after securing admission to an educational institution on the basis of a caste certificate which is subsequently proved to be false, shall also stand cancelled, on cancellation of the caste certificate by the Scrutiny Committee. The Division Bench specifically held that the petitioner had secured admission in the medical course on the basis of the caste claim which is found to be false and, therefore, the petitioner cannot be given protection against cancellation of such admission. 4. The petitioner thereafter challenged the said decision before the Apex Court in Special Leave to Appeal (Civil) No.10514/2010. However, the SLP came to be dismissed by order passed by the Apex Court in .....July, 2010, copy thereof is produced at Exhibit `M' to the petition. 3 srk wp-L-2883-10.sxw 5. In view of the above, the present petition seeking direction to respondent No.4-University, to issue a degree certificate to the petitioner for MBBS Course, is barred by the principle of res judicata. Petition is, therefore, dismissed. CHIEF JUSTICE S.J. VAZIFDAR, J.