The main legal point established in the judgment is the admissibility and reliability of birth certificates, the statutory duty of the Registrar, and the presumptive value of entries in the birth register under Section 35 of the Indian Evidence Act and the Maharashtra Registration of Births and Deaths Rules, 2000.

JUDGMENT

N J Jamadar, J. - Rule. Rule made returnable forthwith and, with the consent of the Counsels for the parties, heard finally at the stage of admission.

2. This petition calls in question the legality, propriety and correctness of the order passed by the Collector, Ahmednagar in Village Panchayat Dispute No. 101/2015, dated 8 th March 2016, whereby the dispute raised by the petitioner alleging that respondent No. 3 had incurred disqualification under Section 14 (1) (j-1) of the Maharashtra Village Panchayat Act, 1959 (the Act 1959), as she had more than two children, was dismissed and the order dated 3rd July 2017 passed by the Additional Commissioner, Nashik Division, Nashik in Appeal No. 43/2016, whereby the appeal there against also came to be dismissed.

3. The background facts leading to this petition can be stated, in brief, as under :

a) The petitioner is a resident of village Rehkuri, Taluka Karjat. He is a registered voter. Respondent No. 3 contested election to the post of the member of Village Panchayat, from Ward No. 3, reserved for woman (General), and was declared elected. While submitting the nomination form, the petitioner alleged, the respondent No. 3 had furnished false declaration. Respondent No. 3 had three children. The third and youngest son Akash was born to her on 1st October 2001 i.e. after the cut-off date of 13th September 2001 and, thus, she was disqualified under Clause (j-1) of sub-section (1) of Section 14 of the Act 1959.

b) The petitioner, thus, lodged a dispute with the Collector. The petitioner annexed the copies of birth certificate issued by the Village Officer and the bona fide certificate issued by the Headmaster, Shri Amarnath Vidyalaya, Karjat, wherein 1st October 2001 was mentioned as the date of birth of Akash. Thereupon, the Collector, Ahmednagar conducted an enquiry under Section 16 of the Act 1959.

c) Respondent No. 3 contended that the third child Akash was born to her on 21st May 2001. There were documents in the nature of the entries in the register of mothers' and new born children, maintained by the health officials, which clearly indicated that Akash was born on 21st May 2001. The documents relied upon by the petitioner namely the birth certificate and bona fide certificate in support of his claim that Akash was born on 1st October 2001, had no evidentiary value. The petitioner had preferred application seeking disqualification of respondent No. 3 to wreck personal vengeance.

d) After appraisal of the rival contentions and material on record, the Collector was of the view that since the husband of respondent No. 3 had instituted a suit, bearing R.C.S. No. 269/2015 for declaration that Akash was born on 21st May 2001, the issue of date of birth of Akash was sub-judice. Secondly, the entries made in the registers of mothers' and integrated child development scheme, indicated the date of birth of the third child of respondent No. 3 was 21st May 2001. Prima facie, those documents also appeared to be valid. Thus, till the dispute about the date of birth of Akash was adjudicated by the Civil Court in R.C.S. No. 269/2015, the documents filed on behalf of respondent No.3 in support of her claim that Akash was born on 21st May 2001, could not be discarded. Holding thus, reserving the liberty to the petitioner disputant to raise the dispute after adjudication by the Civil Court, the dispute came to be rejected.

e) The petitioner assailed the order of the Collector before the Commissioner under Section 16 (2) of the Act 1959. In appeal No. 43/2016, by the impugned judgment and order dated 3rd July 2017, the Additional Commissioner was persuaded to dismiss the appeal concurring with the view of the Collector that the matter of date of birth of Akash was sub-judice before the Civil Court in R.C.S. No. 269/2015 and there was material in the form of the entries in the register R-15 and R-16 maintained by the health officials to indicate that Akash was born on 21st May 2001.

f) Being aggrieved