JUDGMENT :

A.M. Dhavale, J.

In the case of Rajendra Thakur Vs. State and others, Writ Petition No. 4918/2012, (for short, hereinafter referred to as Rajendra Thakur's Case) the Division Bench comprising Mr. Justice Naresh H. Patil (as he then was) and Mr. Justice A.B. Chaudhari did not agree with the view taken in Niraj Kamlakar More Vs. Scheduled Tribe Certificate Scrutiny Committee, Aurangabad and others, writ Petition No.2016/2010 ( for short, hereinafter referred to as Niraj More's case) and other connected matters, decided on 11.05.2012, wherein the Division Bench of this Court comprising Mr. Justice A.S. Oka (as he then was) and Mr. Justice S.P. Deshmukh took a view that even if caste certificate is issued by Competent Authority having no territorial jurisdiction, the Caste Scrutiny Committee is duty bound to make adjudication in respect of caste claim of the petitioner and it cannot be dismissed for want of territorial jurisdiction of the Competent Authority issuing caste certificate.

2. Following issue for the purpose of consideration was framed and referred to the Larger Bench.

"Whether the candidate desirous of seeking caste certificate shall have to apply the Competent Authority having jurisdiction over the area or place to which he/she or his/her father, grandfather originally belongs or was/is an ordinary resident or native of that place?

The Honorable the Chief Justice has constituted the Full Bench to decide the issue.

3. In Rajendra Thakur's case the petitioner and his forefathers were originally residents of District Dhule on the date of Presidential Order dated 06.09.1950. He or his forefather migrated to Nashik. The petitioner obtained scheduled tribe certificate as belonging to 'Thakur' from the Executive Magistrate, Nashik on 11.09.1995. On 16.01.2008, he was appointed as Postal Assistant at Karjat in Taluka Ahmednagar on the basis of his tribe claim. His claim for validity of the tribe claim was made before the Schedule Tribe Certificate Scrutiny Committee, Nashik in 2007 (NSK/ SER/481/2007). The scrutiny Committee, without going into the merits of the tribe claim, noted that the Executive Magistrate, Nashik who had issued the tribe certificate was not the Competent Authority to issue the tribe certificate as the applicant/his father/ forefathers were resident of Dhule district and the certificate should have been obtained from the Competent Authority at Dhule. Reliance was placed on the Judgment of this Court (Nagpur Bench), in Pragati Thakur's case (Writ Petition No.5307/2010) and the decision in Writ Petition No. 1747/2012 dated 24.02.2012. The claim for validity of caste/tribe certificate was rejected on the ground that caste certificate was invalid and an opportunity was granted to the petitioner to approach the Competent Authority to obtain caste certificate and submit the same to the Scrutiny Committee for verification. The Tribe certificate issued by the Executive Magistrate, Nashik was confiscated without affecting merits of the claim.

4. In Niraj More's case, the petitioner had obtained tribe certificate as "Thakur" tribe on 29th September, 2006 from the Deputy Collector & District Supply Officer, Parbhani and the Caste Scrutiny Committee has held that he was not a competent authority and he had no territorial jurisdiction to issue caste certificate. The Cate/tribe certificate was held to be invalid, but the petitioner was granted liberty to obtain fresh certificate from the appropriate authority. The Division bench referred to various provisions including definition of Competent authority under section 4(2) of the Act, 2000 and held that if competent authority was otherwise competent to issue a caste certificate, lack of territorial jurisdiction will not make caste certificate issued by such competent authority as nullity. The Division Bench made distinction between lack of inherent jurisdiction and lack of pecuniary or territorial jurisdiction. Relying on Mantoo Sarkar vs. Oriental Insurance Co. Ltd.