1. Rule.

2. The Respondents waive service. By consent, Rule is made returnable forthwith.

3. This Writ Petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India challenges the order dated 30.07.2012 passed by the Committee for Scrutiny and Verification of Tribe Claims, Nandurbar, Respondent No.2 to this petition.

4. The present petition was instituted in this Court in September, 2012. On 10.09.2012, this Court while issuing notice passed the following order:

"1. Heard. Issue notice to respondents returnable on 08.10.2012. AGP waives service of notice for respondents 1 and 3 and Mr. Tope, standing counsel waives service of notice for respondent No.2.

2. Till the next date, no adverse order be passed against the petitioner on account of non production of validity certificate."

5. We have to set out very few facts to appreciate the arguments of the Petitioner.

6. The Petitioner claims that he belongs to "Thakur" Scheduled Tribe. That is duly notified and recognised as such. The First Respondent is the State of Maharashtra through it's Department of Tribal Development and which has set up Respondent No.2 Committee styled as "The Committee for Scrutiny and Verification of Tribe Claims". The Third Respondent is the competent authority within whose area of operation, the Petitioner resides and therefore, has issued the Caste/Tribe Certificate in favour of the Petitioner. The other Respondents are the North Maharashtra University, Jalgaon and the Principal of an Educational Institution. However, we are not concerned with them any further as no reliefs are claimed by the Petitioner against these Respondents.

7. The caste/tribe certificate dated 12.11.1999 based on which the Petitioner was seeking to pursue an educational degree course, came to be forwarded to Respondent No.2/Scrutiny Committee. Along with the same, the Petitioner claims to have forwarded 56 documents to support the claim that he belongs to Thakur Scheduled Tribe. According to the Petitioner, some of these were Tribe Validity Certificates issued in favour of the Petitioner's relatives including his father Bhalchandra Baburao Salunke on 21.07.2005. There is a Certificate of Validity issued by the Nashik Scrutiny Committee in favour of the Petitioner's real paternal uncle Pramod Baburao Salunke. The said Pramod had to file a writ petition in this Court being Writ Petition No.2278/1996. Pramod challenged the order of the Scrutiny Committee dated 24.03.1995 denying him the Tribe Validity Certificate. This Writ Petition was allowed on 17.03.2004. As a result of which, Pramod obtained the Tribe Validity Certificate. Then, there is reliance placed upon another Certificate of Validity issued on 15.02.2003 by the Scrutiny Committee at Nashik in favour of the Petitioner's real paternal uncle, namely, Manohar Baburao Salunke. The Petitioner filed affidavits of these persons as also genealogy and family tree. The Petitioner also relies upon the Certificates of Validity issued way back on 24.02.1993 in favour of his paternal cousin aunt, Ranjana Rambhau Thakur and dated 05.07.1997 and 20.01.2005 in favour of other paternal cousin brothers Dipak Jayraj Thakur and Pankaj Shrikant Salunke.

8. The Petitioner claims that he also forwarded other documents and styled as "First Page of Service Book" issued to his grandfather, namely, Babu Gaba Thakur. Against relevant column (caste), it is mentioned as "Thakur" in the said service book. It is stated that these are very old entries and pertaining to the years 1928, 1939 and 1945. Fortunately, the Petitioner claims that his grandfather is alive and he filed his affidavit. Then, the Petitioner claims that entries as far as the caste column in the school records of his father and others would indicate that they are belonging to "Thakur" Scheduled Tribe.

9. The Petitioner further claims that each of these documents are produced before the Vigi