16-aswp2632-2021.doc

AGK

IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY

CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION

WRIT PETITION NO. 2632 OF 2021

Phulrenu Harilal Chauhan

aged 54 years, residing at 17/5,

Makarand Society, Veer Savarkar

Marg, Mahim, Mumbai 400 016

…

Petitioner.

V/s.

1.

State of Maharashtra,

through its Secretary, Social

Justice Department,

Mantralaya, Mumbai 400 032.

2.

District Caste Certificate Scrutiny

Committee, Mumbai City,

through its Member Secretary,

having its office at Panchsheel,

Matunga Labour Camp, Mahim,

Mumbai – 400 016.

3.

Deputy Collector, Mumbai City,

Old Custom House, Shaheed

Bhagatsing Marg, Fort,

Mumbai – 400 023

…

Respondents.

Mr. R.K. Mendadkar, with Mr. T.V. Jadhav, for the Petitioner.

Smt. A.A. Purav, AGP, for the Respondents-State.

CORAM : SUNIL B. SHUKRE, AND

AMIT BORKAR, JJ.

DATE : 21st FEBRUARY 2022.

1 / 6

ATUL

GANESH

KULKARNI

Digitally

signed by

ATUL

GANESH

KULKARNI

Date:

2022.02.22

10:19:00

+0530

16-aswp2632-2021.doc

JUDGMENT: (Per Sunil B. Shukre, J.)

1.

Rule. Rule made returnable forthwith. Heard finally by

consent.

2.

Controversy in this petition arises on account of refusal of

Respondent No. 2 to issue Caste Certificate, “Mochi” Scheduled

Caste to the children of the Petitioner on the ground that forefathers

of the Petitioner were not residents of the State of Maharashtra on

the cut-off date, 10th August 1950.

3.

On going through the impugned order passed by Respondent

No. 2 which maintains the order dated 18th January 2018 passed by

Respondent No. 3, we, however, find that both the Respondents

have failed to appreciate the document at page 111 of the petition,

which is a Leaving Certificate issued in the name of Harilal Maganlal

Chohan, father of the Petitioner, in its proper perspective. This

certificate shows the date of admission of the father of the Petitioner

to be 5th April 1943 and date of leaving school to be 31st May 1947.

It further shows that it has been issued by Alfred High School,

Bhavnagar.

4.

In other words, this is a document which shows place of

ordinary residence of the father of the Petitioner and which has been

issued prior to the cut-off date, 10th August 1950 as stipulated in

Section 2(e) of the Maharashtra Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes,

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16-aswp2632-2021.doc

Do-Notified Tribes (Vimukta Jatis), Nomadic Tribes, Other

Backward Classes and Special Backward Category (Regulation of

Issuance and Verification of) Caste Certificate Rules, 2012 (‘Rules,

2012’ for short). This Rule lays down that deemed date means 10th

August 1950, that is the date of Presidential Order for Scheduled

Caste, 21st December 1961 for De-Notified Tribes and Nomadic

Tribes and 13th October 1967 for Other Backward Classes and

Other Special Backward Classes. We are here concerned with the

deemed date of 10th August 1950 as the Petitioner is claiming

herself to be belonging to Mochi ‘Scheduled Caste’. Rule 3 of the

Rules, 2012 lays down that the Competent Authority may issue a

caste certificate to the applicant who is a permanent resident of the

concerned area on deemed date for which the Competent Authority

is designated or appointed by the Government, by notification

published under clause (b) of Section 2 of the Act in the Official

Gazette. This will show that the Competent Authority may issue a

caste certificate to an applicant who is a permanent resident of the

area within the jurisdiction of the Competent Authority on the

deemed date for which area the Competent Authority is designated

or appointed. No doubt, the Competent Authority in the present

case has been designated for the State of Maharashtra but, when we

consider the deemed date of 10th August 1950 for the purposes of

the present petition, the Competent Authority for the State of

Maharashtra having jurisdiction over limited area within the District

would also be the Competent Authority for that area on 10th August

1950. So, the next question that would arise here would be as t