1. Dispute over whether the Gowari community is entitled to Scheduled Tribe status as Gond Gowari under the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order, 1950. (Para 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 )
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2020 Supreme(SC) 717
SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
ASHOK BHUSHAN, R. SUBHASH REDDY, M.R. SHAH, JJ.
THE STATE OF MAHARASHTRA & ANR. – APPELLANT(S)
VERSUS
KESHAO VISHWANATH SONONE & ANR. – RESPONDENT(S)
CIVIL APPEAL NO.4096 of 2020 (arising out of SLP(C)No.15044 of 2020)
with
THE STATE OF MAHARASHTRA & ANR. – APPELLANT(S)
VERSUS
ADIM GOWARI SAMAJ VIKAS MANDAL & ORS – RESPONDENT(S)
CIVIL APPEAL NO.4098-4100 of 2020 (arising out of SLP(C)No.15045-15047 of 2020)
with
ZANAKLAL – APPELLANT(S)
VERSUS
ADIVASI GOND GOVARI (GOWARI) SEWA MANDAL & ORS. – RESPONDENT(S)
CIVIL APPEAL NO. 4097 of 2020 (arising out of SLP(C)No.7901 of 2019)
AND
UNION OF INDIA – APPELLANT(S)
VERSUS
ADIVASI GOND GOVARI (GOWARI) SEVA MANDAL & ORS. – RESPONDENT(S)
CIVIL APPEAL NO. 4101 of 2020 (arising out of SLP(C) Diary No.17886 of 2020)
Decided on : 18-12-2020
Important Points
Courts cannot modify the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order, 1950, by using evidence to declare a listed tribe extinct or substitute it with another community. Under Article 342(2), only Parliament has the authority to include or exclude tribes from the Presidential Order.
Subject
Constitutional Law - Scheduled Tribes
Act Referred
CONSTITUTION OF INDIA: Art.338(a), Art.342, Art.341
CONSTITUTION SCHEDULED TRIBES ORDER: Entry.19, Entry.18, Item.28
SCHEDULED CASTES AND SCHEDULED TRIBES ORDERS AMENDMENT ACT: S.4
STATES RE-ORGANISATION ACT: S.41
CONSTITUTION SCHEDULED TRIBES ORDER: Entry.19, Entry.18, Item.28
SCHEDULED CASTES AND SCHEDULED TRIBES ORDERS AMENDMENT ACT: S.4
STATES RE-ORGANISATION ACT: S.41
Headnote
Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Orders (Amendment) Act, 1976 - Caste certificate - Gond Govari community - Petitioner’s claim in writ petition is that Sunone belong to Gowari caste, which comes under Scheduled Tribes as there is no Gond Govari caste in existence - Sunone was appointed as Technical Assistant - Caste certificate of Gond Govari Scheduled Tribe was issued to Sunone - Caste certificate of Sunone was sent for verification of caste - Caste Scrutiny Committee vide its order dated invalidated caste certificate of Sunone - Challenging order of Caste Scrutiny Committee dated - Whether any caste should be considered as included in Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order, 1950, where it is not specifically mentioned in same – Held, Court come to last submission submits that Scheduled Tribe Certificate to members of ‘Gowari’ community was granted after judgment of High Court dated on basis of which certificates large number of students have taken admission in different educational institutions taking benefit of Scheduled Tribes as well as employment at various places as Scheduled Tribes candidates which need to be protected by this Court - Court in ends of justice directs that admission taken and employment secured by members of ‘Gowari’ community on basis of Scheduled Tribe certificate granted to them between till date shall not be affected by this judgment and they shall be allowed to retain benefit of Scheduled Tribe obtained by them - However, above Scheduled Tribe candidates shall not be entitled to any further benefit as Scheduled Tribe except their initial admission in different courses or employment at different places on strength of Scheduled Tribe certificate given to ‘Gowari’ Community obtained between and this day - Court allow appeals.
Legal Category Hierarchy
Advocates Appeared:
For the Appellant(s) : Mr. Shyam Divan, Sr. Adv. Mr. Ravindra Keshavrao Adsure, AOR Mr. Siddheswar Namdev Biradar, Adv. Ms. Sakshi Ajit Kale, Adv. Mr. Vinayak Bhandari, Adv. Ms. Sansriti Pathak, Adv. Mr. Raj Bahadur Yadav, AOR Mr. Ravindra Keshavrao Adsure, AOR Mr. Yash Prashant Sonavane, Adv. Mr. Jaiprakash Chavan, Adv. Ms. Sangita Sagar Pahune Patil, Adv. Mr. C.U. Singh, Sr. Adv. Mr. Mohan Sudame, Adv. Ms. Sangita Gupta, Adv. Mr. Amjid Maqbool, Adv. Mr. Manish Kumar Gupta, AOR
For the Respondent(s): Mr. Mukul Rohatgi, Sr. Adv. Mr. Ram Parsodkar, Adv. Mr. Shakul R. Ghatole, Adv. Mr. Siddharth Dharmadhikari, Adv. Ms. Jaikriti S. Jadeja, AOR Ms. Astha Sharma, AOR Mr. Mukul Rohatgi, Sr. Adv. Mr. Siddharth Dharmadhikari, Adv. Mr. Abhay Anturkar, Adv. Ms. Aagam Kaur, Adv. Mr. Abhikalp Pratap Singh, AOR Ms. Bansuri Swaraj, Adv. Mr. Siddhesh Kotwal, Adv. Mr. Divyansh Tiwari, Adv. Ms. Ana Upadhyay, Adv. Mr. Nirnimesh Dube, AOR Mr. Sachin Patil, AOR Mr. Gagan Sanghi, Adv. Mr. Rameshwar Prasad Goyal, AOR Mr. Sanjay Jain, ASG Mr. Amrish Kumar, AOR Mr. Sudhanshu S. Choudhari, AOR Mr. Mahesh P. Shinde, Adv. Mr. Yogesh Kolte, Adv. Mr. Kunal Cheema, AOR Ms. Ruchita Kunal Cheema, Adv.
For the Appellant(s) : Mr. Shyam Divan, Sr. Adv. Mr. Ravindra Keshavrao Adsure, AOR Mr. Siddheswar Namdev Biradar, Adv. Ms. Sakshi Ajit Kale, Adv. Mr. Vinayak Bhandari, Adv. Ms. Sansriti Pathak, Adv. Mr. Raj Bahadur Yadav, AOR Mr. Ravindra Keshavrao Adsure, AOR Mr. Yash Prashant Sonavane, Adv. Mr. Jaiprakash Chavan, Adv. Ms. Sangita Sagar Pahune Patil, Adv. Mr. C.U. Singh, Sr. Adv. Mr. Mohan Sudame, Adv. Ms. Sangita Gupta, Adv. Mr. Amjid Maqbool, Adv. Mr. Manish Kumar Gupta, AOR
For the Respondent(s): Mr. Mukul Rohatgi, Sr. Adv. Mr. Ram Parsodkar, Adv. Mr. Shakul R. Ghatole, Adv. Mr. Siddharth Dharmadhikari, Adv. Ms. Jaikriti S. Jadeja, AOR Ms. Astha Sharma, AOR Mr. Mukul Rohatgi, Sr. Adv. Mr. Siddharth Dharmadhikari, Adv. Mr. Abhay Anturkar, Adv. Ms. Aagam Kaur, Adv. Mr. Abhikalp Pratap Singh, AOR Ms. Bansuri Swaraj, Adv. Mr. Siddhesh Kotwal, Adv. Mr. Divyansh Tiwari, Adv. Ms. Ana Upadhyay, Adv. Mr. Nirnimesh Dube, AOR Mr. Sachin Patil, AOR Mr. Gagan Sanghi, Adv. Mr. Rameshwar Prasad Goyal, AOR Mr. Sanjay Jain, ASG Mr. Amrish Kumar, AOR Mr. Sudhanshu S. Choudhari, AOR Mr. Mahesh P. Shinde, Adv. Mr. Yogesh Kolte, Adv. Mr. Kunal Cheema, AOR Ms. Ruchita Kunal Cheema, Adv.
Table of Contents
2. Whether courts can interpret Presidential Orders to include non-listed communities or declare a listed tribe extinct to substitute it with another. (Para 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 )
3. Presidential Orders are conclusive; courts cannot conduct inquiries to include non-listed castes or declare listed tribes extinct based on census data. (Para 41 , 42 , 43 , 44 , 45 , 46 , 47 , 48 , 49 , 50 , 51 , 52 , 53 , 54 , 55 , 56 , 57 , 58 , 59 , 60 , 61 , 62 , 63 , 64 , 65 , 66 , 67 , 68 , 69 , 70 , 71 , 72 , 73 , 74 , 75 , 76 , 77 , 78 , 79 , 80 , 81 , 82 , 83 , 84 , 85 , 86 , 87 , 88 , 89 , 90 , 91 , 92 , 93 , 94 , 95 , 96 , 97 , 98 , 99 )
4. Only Parliament can amend the Scheduled Tribes list under Article 342(2); courts cannot modify the Order by evidence or declare synonyms. (Para 41 , 58 , 59 , 60 , 61 )
5. Appeals allowed and High Court judgment set aside; admissions and employment obtained between 2018 and judgment date are protected. (Para 100 , 101 , 102 , 103 )
6. Who has the authority to include or exclude a community from the Scheduled Tribes list?
Under Article 342(2) of the Constitution, only Parliament has the exclusive power to include or exclude any tribe or tribal community from the list specified in the Presidential notification. (Para 41 , 58 , 59 , 60 , 61 )
7. Can courts let in evidence to prove a community is a synonym or sub-tribe of a listed Scheduled Tribe?
No. Courts cannot hold inquiries or let in evidence to establish that a particular caste or group is included in the Presidential Order if not expressly mentioned. (Para 42 , 47 , 48 , 58 , 59 , 60 , 61 )
8. Can a court declare a listed Scheduled Tribe extinct based on census reports to grant benefits to another community?
No. A listed tribe cannot be treated as extinct merely because census classifications changed; such a finding cannot be used to substitute one community for another. (Para 69 , 70 , 71 , 81 , 82 )
9. Are the Gowari and Gond Gowari communities considered the same for the purpose of Scheduled Tribe benefits?
No. They are distinct communities with different customs and traditions; Gowari is not the same as Gond Gowari and is not entitled to Scheduled Tribe status. (Para 83 , 84 , 85 , 86 , 95 )
10. Is an affinity test required to establish the validity of a caste certificate for a sub-tribe like Gond Gowari?
Yes. Since Gond Gowari is a sub-tribe of Gond, its validity must be tested based on the affinity test specified in government guidelines. (Para 87 , 88 , 92 , 94 , 95 )
JUDGMENT :
ASHOK BHUSHAN, J.
Leave granted.
2. These appeals filed against the common judgment dated 14.08.2018 of Bombay High Court, Nagpur Bench raise the issues of seminal importance pertaining to a Scheduled Tribe namely “Gond Govari” in the State of Maharashtra included in the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order, 1950 as amended by Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Orders (Amendment) Act, 1976 as applicable in the State of Maharashtra.
3. The Bombay High Court vide judgment dated 14.08.2018 allowed four writ petitions being Writ Petition No. 1742 of 2007, Writ Petition No.4779 of 2008, Writ Petition No. 4032 of 2009 and Writ Petition No.1680 of 2012. We may notice in brief the claim of the writ petitioners in the aforesaid writ petitions.
Writ Petition No.1742 of 2007 -Keshao Vishwanath Sunone Vs. State of Maharashtra and Ors.
4. Keshao Vishwanath Sunone (hereinafter referred to as “Sunone”) claimed himself to belong to Gowari caste. The petitioner’s claim in the writ petition is that Sunone belong to Gowari caste, which comes under the Scheduled Tribes as there is no Gond Govari caste in existence. Sunone was appointed as Technical Assistant on 29.08.1983. The caste certificate of Gond Govari Scheduled Tribe was issued to Sunone on 03.07.1986. The caste certificate of Sunone was sent for verification of caste. The Caste Scrutiny Committee vide its order dated 13.01.2007 invalidated the caste certificate of Sunone. Challenging the order of Caste Scrutiny Committee dated 13.01.2007, writ petition was filed with following prayers:-
“(a) issue appropriate writ, order or directions thereby quash and set aside an order passed by the Scheduled Tribe Certificate Scrutiny Committee, Amravati Division, Amravati dated 13.1.2007;
(b) stay and effect and operation of the impugned order dated 13.1.2007 passed by the Scheduled Tribe Certificate Scrutiny Committee, Amravati Division, Amravati during the pendency of this petition and to protect the services of the petitioners;
(c) grant any other relief as this Hon’ble Court deems fit and proper in the facts and circumstances of the case.”
Writ Petition No.4779 of 2008 -Adivasi Gond Govari (Gowari) Sewa Mandal through its President Vs. State of Maharashtra and Ors.
5. The writ petitioner claimed to be an association working for the welfare of people belonging to Gond Govari community. The petitioner association had filed a writ petition questing the caste validity certificate issued to respondent Nos.4 to 19 as Scheduled Tribe (Gond Govari). Petitioners’ case was that without conducting an enquiry, the caste validity certificate was issued. The petitioners’ case further was that the validity certificate issued as Gond Govari Scheduled Tribe was wrongly issued since the respondents belonged to Gowari community and they did not belong to Gond Govari community.
6. In the writ petition, the petitioner has prayed for quashing the caste validity certificates issued to respondent Nos.4 to 19. A further direction was sought that Caste Scrutiny Committee, Nagpur not to issue caste validity certificate pertaining to Gond Govari Scheduled Tribe and the detailed inquiries be conducted. It was further prayed that Commissioner, Tribal Research and Training Institute, Pune and Caste Scrutiny Committee Nagpur be directed to conduct full place enquiry in the relation to Gowari and Gond Govari entries.
Writ Petition No.4032 of 2009 -Adim Gowari Samaj Vikas Mandal and Ors. Vs. State of Maharashtra and Anr.
7. The petitioner association registered in 2004 claimed to be working in the field of betterment and welfare of members of people belonging to Gowari community. In the writ petition, reference was made to the Government Resolution dated 24.04.1985, whereby the Government issued guidelines for taking precautionary measures while issuing the tribe certificate. Alongwith the Government Resolution, a chart was issued containing a comparative study, which relate to members of actual Scheduled Tribes and other
