1 IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE OF BOMBAY BENCH AT AURANGABAD WRIT PETITION NO. 4924 OF 2009 Kamal S/o.Bapurao Ijjapwar Age-Minor, Occu-Education, R/o.At-Post-Hingani, Tal.Biloli, Dist.Nanded, through natural guardian/father Bapurao S/o.Gangaram Ijjapwar, Age-42 years, Occu-Agriculturist, 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, District-Nanded RESPONDENTS Mr.S.M.Vibhute, learned counsel for petitioner. Mr.N.N.Jadhav, learned AGP for respondent no.1 and 3. Mr.U.S.Malte, learned counsel for respondent no.2. (CORAM : P.V.HARDAS AND A.V.POTDAR, J.J.) DATE : 29/07/2009 2 ORAL JUDGMENT : (Per A.V.Potdar, J.) 1. Rule. Rule made returnable forthwith. By consent of the respective counsels, the writ petition is taken up for final hearing at the stage of admission. 2. By the present writ petition under Article 226 of The Constitution of India, the petitioner has challenged the judgment and order passed by the Caste Scrutiny Committee Aurangabad Division Aurangabad dated 29/04/2009 in case No.Appeal/NAN/173/2009, which arises out of the order passed by The Sub Divisional Officer, Degloor dated 09/03/2009 by which the Sub Divisional Officer, Degloor has rejected the application of the petitioner dated 04/02/2009 by which the petitioner has applied for issuance of the caste certificate as the petitioner belongs to caste “Manerwarlu” Scheduled Tribe. 3. Heard respective counsels for petitioner and respondents. During the course of submissions, learned counsel for the petitioner as well as for respondents taken us through the record annexed with the present petition. Before proceeding with these submissions, it is necessary to consider the facts which gave rise to file the present writ petition. The applicant petitioner herein have filed an application on 04/02/2009 before The Sub Divisional Officer, Degloor for issuance of caste certificate. Alongwith the application, he has annexed number of documents including the caste verification certificate 3 issued in the name of his uncle Punjab Eknathrao Ijjapwar, and uncle Ashok Ijjapwar. These uncles have also filed their affidavits alongwith genealogy showing their relations with applicant. In his order dated 09/03/2009, all these documents were negatived by the Learned Sub Divisional Officer by observing that the evidence tendered by the petitioner is not sufficient to hold or to his subjective satisfaction that the petitioner is entitled for issuance of a caste certificate as he belongs to caste Manerwarlu and he rejected the said application vide his order dated 09/03/2009. Being aggrieved by the said order, the petitioner has preferred an appeal before The Caste Scrutiny Committee, Aurangabad, Divisional Aurangabad bearing appeal no.172/2009 in which it is observed by the Committee “that the order passed by The Sub Divisional Officer, Degloor, District Nanded and the documentary evidence submitted by the appellant alongwith the proposal, the Committee have come to the conclusion that the Sub Divisional Officer Degloor has passed the order as he is not satisfied with the documentary evidence tendered before him by the petitioner and we are in agreement with the conclusion drawn by the learned Sub Divisional Officer”. 4. On perusal of the documentary evidence laid before The Sub Divisional Officer, Degloor which was also appreciated by The Scrutiny Committee alongwith the affidavits of Ijjapwar Ashok and Ijjapwar Panjab Eknathrao, who are holding caste validity certificate issued by the Scheduled Tribe Committee. The genealogy established that they are blood relatives of the present applicant petitioner. These 4 documents were not properly considered by The Sub Divisional officer, Degloor, as well as the members of The Scrutiny Committee. Primafacie it appears that without application of mind towards these documentary evidence produced by the petitioner alongwith his application, the Sub Divisional Officer, Degloor as well as the members of the Scrutiny Committee have concluded that the documentary evidence is not sufficient to issue the caste certificate in favour of the petitioner which is apparently a wrong appreciation of the documentary evidence on record. 5. In the premise, considering these documentary evidence the order passed by the Learned Sub Divisional Officer, Degloor as well as the members of the Scrutiny Committee i.e. impugned order under challenge in this writ petition required to be quashed and set aside. Accordingly we quashed and set aside the order passed by The scrutiny Committee dated 28/04/2009 as well as by The Sub Divisional Officer, Degloor dated 09/03/2009 and we direct the Sub Divisional Officer, Degloor to issue caste certificate to the petitioner as petitioner belongs to Manerwarlu Scheduled Tribe. 6. We hereby make it clear that even though we have directed The Sub Divisional Officer, Degloor to issue the caste certificate to the petitioner as petitioner belongs to Manerwarlu Scheduled Tribe., this caste certificate issued in favour of the petitioner is subject to the caste validity certificate to be issued by the competent authority. 5 7. Thus the writ petition succeeds. Rule made absolute as indicated above. The writ petition stands disposed of with no order as to costs. (A.V.POTDAR, J.) (P.V.HARDAS, J.) khs/JULY 2009/wp4924-09