1. Heard learned counsel for the parties.

2. In this writ petition some interesting questions of constitutional law arise from the undisputed facts of this case.

3. The petitioners father Sri Ram Komal was originally a resident of Village - Bhaishali Buzurg, P. O. Kanaicha, District Gorakhpur in the State of Uttar Pradesh and he belongs to caste Pasi. The petitioners father while working as Electric Loco Driver of the South Eastern Railways and posted at Tatanagar in the State of Bihar was alloted official quarters at Tatanagar in the month of April, 1979 and since then he has been living there. The petitioner who is the son of the aforesaid Sri Ram Komal did his schooling in St. Mary Hindi High School, Bishtupur and from there he passed S. S. Examination in 1985 in First Division. Thereafter, he did his I. S. C. from Jamshedpur Co-operative College in the examination conducted by the Bihar Intermediate Education Council, Patna through Ranchi University, Ranchi. Thereafter petitioner did his M.B.B.S. course from L. N. Mithila University.

4. The petitioner claims that he belongs to Pasi Community which is a scheduled caste community within the meaning of Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes Amendment Act, 1950. This also appears from the caste certificate No. 7881 dated 7-6-1985 granted by the concerned authority as well as another caste certificate No. 42 dated 10-4-1996 granted by the Anchaladhikari, Jamshedpur and the Residence Certificate No. 23 dated 11-1-1988 granted by the Deputy Commissioner, Singh bhum (Chaibasa).

5. It is not in dispute that both in the State of Bihar and in Uttar Pradesh the said caste Pasi falls in the category of scheduled caste. The petitioner stated in para 11 of the writ petition that throughout his academic career even upto the stage of his final M.B.B.S. course he has always rightly and validly been treated as a Scheduled Caste candidate. This fact has not been denied in the counter affidavit filed by the respondents.

6. The petitioner thereafter applied for admission for the course of Post Graduate Medical in Medical Colleges of the state of Bihar by obtaining application form and post Graduate Medical Admission Test Prospectus, 1996 and appeared in the test on 14th January, 1996 for the purpose of admission in the said course. His roll number was 5326. The result of the said test was declared in the last week of March, 1996 and the petitioner was declared successful. His position in the merit list shown as 20th in S. C. category candidates. Thereafter the petitioner was required to appear before the appropriate authority for verification of original documents and certificates. The petitioner appeared personally in the Indira Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences, Patna along with the original documents and certificates on 26th April, 1996 for counselling and for verification of the aforesaid original documents. The date of counselling was changed from 26th April, 1996 to 4th June, 1996. On that date also the petitioner appeared with the required documents, but the petitioner was shocked and surprised to know that the authority concerned rejected the petitioners claim for admission in Post Graduate Medical course on the ground that he is a resident of U. P. and he cannot be given the benefit of Pasi community which is the scheduled caste community in the State of U. P. As a result of the aforesaid decision being taken by the authority his position in the merit list slided down and the petitioner was denied admission in the medical course though he occupied 20th position in the list among scheduled caste candidate.

7. Learned counsel appearing on behalf of the respondents filed a counter affidavit in which the factual position asserted by the writ petitioner in the writ petition has not been denied. The only ground on which counsel for the respondents relied in the course of his argument and in his counter affidavit has been stated in Para-4 which is set out below :-

Para-4 That for the