ORDER :

1. The petitioner has fled this petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India against the order/report dated 26.05.2008 (Annexure P/3) passed by the respondent No.3-The Caste Certificate High Level Scrutiny Committee (for short ‘the Committee’), whereby the petitioner’s claim has been rejected recording the finding that petitioner’s caste ‘Panika’ falls under the category of ‘Other Backward Class’, and recommended to cancel his candidature & all the promotions given to him during his service period against post reserved for ‘Scheduled Caste’, whereas the petitioner’s claim is that he belongs to Caste ‘Panika’, which comes under the category of ‘Scheduled Tribe’.

2. Brief facts of the case are that, the petitioner belongs to caste ‘Panika’, which comes under the category of Scheduled Tribe as per the notification issued from time to time by the State Government. The petitioner, after completing his education, applied for the caste certificate before the competent authority. On 23.01.1987, Tahsildar, Rajnandgaon, after due and requisite verification, issued a caste certificate to the petitioner that the petitioner is a member of Scheduled Tribe. On the basis of the said caste certificate, the petitioner applied for the employment in the Forest Department and subsequently got selected for the post of ‘Forest Guard’. After joining the duty by the petitioner, a notice was issued by the employer/respondent No.2 regarding verification and genuineness of the caste certificate of the petitioner. The petitioner appeared and submitted the requisite documents regarding his social status and genuineness of his caste certificate before the Committee. The respondent No.3 started its enquiry and sent its report to the respondent No.2 contending that the petitioner is not a member of ‘Scheduled Caste’ and the Committee has also recommended to cancel his candidature and all the promotions given to him during his service period against post reserved for ‘Scheduled Caste’. Thus, the petitioner has fled the instant petition for quashing and setting aside the impugned order dated 26.05.2008 (Annexure P-3) of the Committee.

3. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that on 20.01.1987, the petitioner was appointed as ‘Forest Guard’ in the office of respondent No.2 against the reserved category post. Before joining the post, the petitioner applied for caste certificate (Annexure P-1) and, on 23.01.1987, the competent authority issued the caste certificate to the petitioner that the petitioner belongs to a member of ‘Scheduled Tribe’. Learned counsel for the petitioner further submits that at the time of his joining, he written his caste as ‘Panika’ (Scheduled Tribe) in service book (Annexure P-4). The Committee has erroneously started enquiry behind the back of the petitioner without affording opportunity of hearing and recorded the finding that the petitioner was got selected against the post reserved for ‘Scheduled Caste’ and the caste ‘Panika’ does not fall under the category of ‘Scheduled Caste’ and passed the impugned order dated 26.05.2008 (Annexure P-3). Learned counsel also submits that the Committee has not made any proper enquiry prior to giving the report (Annexure P-3) regarding the caste of the petitioner as per the guidelines issued by the Hon’ble Apex Court in the matter of Ku. Madhuri Patil & Anr. V. Additional Commissioner, Tribal Development Thane & Ors. reported in 1995 AIR 94. The report of the Committee is illegal, arbitrary and full of malafde, therefore, the same deserves to be quashed. It is next submitted that relying upon the report (Annexure P-3) of the Committee, the respondent No.2 has started disciplinary action against the petitioner, whereas the report is itself illegal and arbitrary. In support of his submission, learned counsel for the petitioner placed reliance on the decision of High Court of Madhya Pradesh, Jabalapur, in the matter of Lakhandas Manikpuri and Anr. V. The Central Warehousing Corpor