1 IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY BENCH AT AURANGABAD. WRIT PETITION NO. 5953 OF 2009. Shri Abhaysing S/o Supdusing Bainande, Age 29 years, Occu. Service, R/o Roop Nagar, Jalna Dist. Jalna. .. PETITIONER. VERSUS 1) The State of Maharashtra, Department of Tribal Development, Mantralaya, Mumbai-32 Through its Secretary. 2) The SC,NT,VJNT,OBC,SBC, Caste Certificate Verification Committee No. 1, Through its Member Secretary, Aurangabad, Dist. Aurangabad 3) The Sub Divisional Officer, Jalna . RESPONDENTS. ... Shri S.C. Yeramwar Advocate h/f A.S. Golegaonkar, Advocate for Petitioner. Shri K.G. Patil, Assistant Government Pleader, for respondent Nos. 1 & 3. Shri U.S. Malte, Advocate for respondent No. 2. WITH WRIT PETITION No. 5957 of 2009 Kumari Amolika d/o Supdusing Bainande, Age 26 years, Occu. Student, R/o Roop Nagar, Jalna Dist. Jalna. .. PETITIONER. VERSUS 2 1) The State of Maharashtra, Department of Tribal Development, Mantralaya, Mumbai-32 Through its Secretary. 2) The SC,NT,VJNT,OBC,SBC, Caste Certificate Verification Committee No. 1, Through its Member Secretary, Aurangabad, Dist. Aurangabad 3) The Sub Divisional Officer, Jalna . RESPONDENTS. ... Shri S.C. Yeramwar Advocate h/f A.S. Golegaonkar, Advocate for Petitioner. Shri V.H. Dighe, Assistant Government Pleader, for respondent Nos. 1 & 3. Shri P.S. Patil, Advocate for respondent No. 2. CORAM : A.M. KHANWILKAR AND S.S. SHINDE, JJ. DATE : 10th FEBRUARY 2010. PER COURT: (S.S. Shinde, J.) 1. Heard. Learned Counsel appearing for the respective parties. Rule, returnable forthwith. With the consent of the parties, heard finally at the stage of admission. The petitioner in Writ Petition No. 5953 of 2009 is original resident of Khamgaon (Gurav), Tq. Badnapur, Dist. Jalna and claims to be from the category of ‘Pardeshi Bhamta’ Vimukta 3 Jati. The petitioner in Writ Petition No. 5957 of 2009 is real sister of petitioner in Writ Petition No. 5953 of 2009 and she is prosecuting her studies and claims to be from ‘Pardeshi Bhamta” Vimukta Jati category. The Sub Divisional Officer, Jalna has issued caste certificates to the petitioners mentioning therein that they belong to ‘Pardeshi Bhamta’ Vimkuta Jati category. As the petitioners wanted to take benefit of reserved category, their caste claim was referred to the respondent No.2 Committee for verification. Their caste claim came to be invalidated by order dated 22-10-1999. The said decision of the respondent No. 2 Committee was under challenge before this Court in Writ Petition No. 5204 of 1999 and Writ Petition No. 5205 of 1999 filed by the petitioners. In the said Writ Petitions,by Judgment and order dated 24-08-2007 this Court remitted the matter back to the respondent No. 2- Committee for fresh consideration and for taking appropriate decision within four months about the 4 validity of the caste claim of the petitioners. 2. In pursuant to the said order dated 24-08-2007, the petitioners appeared before the Committee on 10-09-2007. The petitioners filed application on same day praying therein for filing additional documents on record and further to issue summons to the persons mentioned in the said application. The said application was rejected by the respondent No.2-Committee. It is the case of the petitioner that, 06-05-2008 was the next date of hearing given by the Committee. When the petitioners along with their parents went to the office of the Committee on 06-05-2008, they were told that next date of hearing is 20-05-2008. It is further case of the petitioners that, on 20-05-2008 the father and mother of the petitioners were present before the Committee and on their request next date was given as 31-05-2008. On 31-05-2008 when the petitioners went to the office of the respondent Committee, they were told that since the Committee does not function on Saturday, and therefore, petitioners should appear before the 5 Committee on 03-06-2008. It is further case of the petitioners that on 03-06-2008 the petitioners submitted in all Seven (7) documents in support of their caste claim before the committee along with application wherein the documents showing the past criminal record of family of the petitioner, as their community was known as Criminal Tribe. These documents have been accepted by the Committee and were placed before the Research Officer, said officer called the petitioners and their parents and told that the Committee has already taken its decision thereby invalidating caste claims of the petitioners on 20-05-2008 itself. Hence this Writ Petition are filed by the petitioners. The main grievance of the petitioners in the petitions is, in spite of directions by this Court in Writ Petition Nos. 5204 of 199 and 5205 of 1999, no proper opportunity of hearing and producing documentary evidence on record was given to the petitioners by the respondent Committee. According to the petitioners, in fact, the Committee should have 6 allowed the petitioners to place on record necessary documents and also should have heard them. Therefore, learned counsel appearing for the petitioner would submit that, the matter may be remitted back to the Committee for fresh hearing by setting aside the impugned decision of the respondent No. 2-Committee. 3. The learned counsel appearing for the respondent No. 2-Committee would submit that, since Committee has properly scrutinised the documents and given reasons in support of rejection of the caste claims of the petitioners, this Court may not interfere in the impugned decision. 4. We have heard learned counsel appearing for the respective parties at length, and also perused earlier judgment and order dated 24-08-2007 passed by this Court in Writ Petition Nos. 5204 of 1999 and 5205 of 1999, and we are of the considered opinion that, in spite of observations of this Court in para No. 9 of the said judgment, the respondent No. 2-Committee has 7 failed to afford proper opportunity to the petitioners to allow them to submit documentary evidence in support of their caste claims. This Court in para No. 9 of the said judgment has observed thus :- “ That so far as extending appropriate opportunity to the petitioners and to put up their case before the Committee is concerned, the objection raised by the counsel for the petitioners appears to have some substance. On perusal of the order passed by the Scrutiny Committee, it does not appear that an opportunity of hearing was afforded to the petitioners to substantiate their case before the Scrutiny Committee. There is nothing on record to demonstrate that after the report of the Vigilance Cell was received, the petitioners were called upon to submit their evidence in the form of documents or were afforded personal hearing by the Committee. On this count alone, the decision rendered by the Scrutiny Committee is vitiated.” On plain reading of aforesaid 8 paragraph, it is clear that, it was incumbent on the respondent Committee to allow the petitioners to submit their evidence in the form of documents and to afforded personal hearing to them. This Court in said disposed of Writ Petitions directed the petitioners to appear before the Committee on 10-06-2007 at 11.00 AM. On the said date application was filed on behalf of petitioners to submit documents on record and to summon the persons mentioned in the application to appear before the Committee. In our opinion, the Committee should have permitted petitioners to place on record documents in support of their caste claims as observed by this Court in afore said para. Therefore, in our considered opinion, the impugned decision passed by the Committee is without affording proper opportunity to the petitioners to place on record the evidence in the nature of documents in support of their claims and also without giving personal hearing to the petitioners, and therefore, impugned decision deserves to be set aside. On perusal of list of documents 9 which is mentioned in the application, it appears that those documents are relevant to be considered while deciding validation of the caste claims of the petitioners. Therefore, the impugned decision of the respondent No. 2- Committee dated 27-05-2008 is quashed and set aside. Once again matter is remitted back to the Respondent No. 2-Committee for fresh consideration. The Respondent No. 2-Committee should allow the petitioners to place documentary evidence on record on first date of hearing, and in the light of documents which are already placed on record, and the documentary evidence which will be placed on record and after affording proper opportunity of hearing to the petitioners, the Respondent No. 2-Committee shall decide the validity of the caste claims of the petitioners within four months from today. The Petitioners to appear before the Committee on 25-02-2010 at 11.00 AM and submit all documents on which they wish to rely on the same date. It is made clear that petitioners should not ask for 10 adjournment on the said date or further time for placing or furnishing documentary evidence on record and cooperate the respondent No. 2- Committee for hearing and deciding the matter. [ S.S. SHINDE, J ] [ A.M. KHANWILKAR, J ] SDM* WP5953.09