The main legal principle established in the judgment is the need for thorough verification of caste certificates to prevent ineligible or spurious persons from availing reservation benefits, in line with the constitutional concept of reservation to uplift backward communities.

JUDGMENT :

Heard Mr. R. Bora, learned counsel for the petitioners. Also heard Ms. K. Phukan, learned counsel for the respondent in the Ministry of Human Resource Development Department of Government of Assam, Ms. R.S. Choudhury, learned counsel for the respondents in the Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti, Mr. P. Saikia, learned Junior Government Advocate for the Deputy Commissioner, West Karbi Anglong and Mr. R.M. Das, learned counsel for the respondents in the Social Justice and Empowerment Department of Government of Assam who has entered appearance for the respondent No. 6.

2. Although respondent No. 6 is depicted to be the Commissioner and Secretary to the Government of Assam in the Welfare of Plain Tribes and Backward Classes Development, it is clarified that the Welfare of Plain Tribes and Backward Classes Development Department has been bifurcated and the Department of Social Justice and Empowerment is one of the departments as a result of the bifurcation and the subject matter involved in the present writ petitions regarding the caste certificates of the candidates claiming to be belonging to the Tea Garden Labourer/Ex-Tea Garden Labourer community are within the purview of the Department of Social Justice and Empowerment.

3. Twelve petitioners have jointly filed this writ petition claiming that they respectively belong to the Nonia community and Koiri community. All the petitioners upon passing their Class V Annual Examination from the respective schools applied through the online mode for selection for admission to Class VI in the Jawahar Navodaya Viyalaya and accordingly, participated in the Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya selection test. Upon such applications, admit cards were issued to them, participated in the selection test and as per the provisional select list dated 19.06.2023 they were shown to have been selected for the admission. In order to carry forward the admission process there is a requirement from the authorities in Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti for production of the relevant certificates from the competent authorities in respect, amongst others, of the candidates claiming admission as the Other Backward Classes (in short, OBC) candidates.

4. The petitioners accordingly produced their respective OBC certificates issued to their fathers/parents/guardians, which are annexed as Annexure-C series to the writ petition. All such certificates were issued under the signature of the President/General Secretary of the All Assam Other Backward Classes Association and it also contains the counter signature of the Deputy Commissioner of Karbi Anglong district. But the respondents in the Jawahar Navodya School Samiti did not accept the OBC certificates issued to the respective fathers/parents/guardians of the petitioners by referring to Clause 3.6 of the school prospectus. As there is a requirement of the certificates having issued in the name of the candidates, the petitioners applied for their respective certificates but the concerned authorities had not issued the certificates.

5. In the circumstance, writ petition WP(C)/3975/2023 has been instituted seeking for a direction to the respondent No. 4 being the authorities in the Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya to allow the petitioners to be admitted in Class VI with a further prayer for a direction to the Deputy Commissioner, Karbi Anglong, Hamren to do the needful for issuing the OBC certificates in favour of the petitioners. The respondents in the Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti filed an affidavit-in-opposition taking a stand that the petitioners by claiming to be belonging to the Nonia and Koiri communities otherwise do not belong to the OBC category unless their claims fall under Entry 24 of the list of OBC candidates in the State of Assam as per the Gazette Notification Regd. No. D.L. 33004/93 dated 13.09.1993 of the Government of Assam.

6. Entry 24 of the Gazette Notification Re