Smt. Mutthamma vs The District Caste Verification Committee

A.N. Venugopala Gowda, J.—Petitioner made an application on 15.12.2010 for issue of Caste Certificate for the purpose of contesting elections of Zilla Panchayat, Mandya District, as one of the seats was reserved for a Scheduled Tribe woman candidate. Petitioner claims that she belongs to ''Nayak'' caste and therefore, sought issuance of Caste Certificate as belonging to Scheduled Tribe. The Tahsildar, K.R. Pet Taluk issued Caste Certificate to the petitioner on 18.12.2010. A complaint having been made by one Sri Anjanigowda, to the Tahsildar, Mandya, to cancel the said Caste Certificate, the petitioner having appeared and contended before the Tahsildar that he has become Functus Officio and cannot act on the complaint, she was served with a notice dated 22.11.2011, issued by the respondent, for appearing before the respondent. Impugning the said notice, as at Annexure-E, this writ petition was filed.

Sri Praveen Kumar Raikote, learned counsel, contended that the action of the respondent in issuing the impugned notice is one without jurisdiction. He placed reliance on an order dated 23.1.2009 passed in W.P. 13173/2008 - Sri Chikkanna v. District Social Welfare Officer and Member Secretary District Schedule Caste and Schedule Tribe Caste Verification Committee, Mysore District, Mysore.

Sri C. Jagadish, learned counsel appearing for the respondent, on the other hand contended that the case of Chikkanna being related to the election to Karnataka Legislative Assembly, is distinguishable. Learned counsel submitted that the petitioner having played fraud and obtained the Caste Certificate dated 18.12.2010 from the Tahsildar, the Deputy Commissioner, Mandya District can initiate proceedings into the matter relating to the obtaining of Schedule Tribe Caste Certificate by the petitioner.

Having heard the learned counsel on both sides, in my opinion, the matter is squarely covered by the order dated 23.1.2009 passed in W.P. No. 13173/2008. The impugned notice has been issued in exercise of the power under S. 4-C of the Karnataka Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and other Backward Classes (Reservation of Appointments, Etc) Act, 1990 and Rules 1992. By considering the scope of the said Act and the Rules made thereunder, it has been held by this Court in the said order as follows: 14. The said Act and Rules are enacted for the purpose of issuing caste certificate or validity certificate only in the event of the said certificate being made use of for appointment or for getting an admission to a course in an educational institution. In the instant case, the petitioner has not made use of the caste certificate either for appointment in the State or Central Government or for admission in educational institution. He has made use of this certificate to support his contention that he belongs to scheduled tribe at the time of filing nomination papers to a reserved constituency. Therefore such cases are not covered under this Act. In that view of the matter, the impugned notice issued is one without jurisdiction.

Since the impugned action of the respondent vide Annexure-E is beyond the scope of the Act and the Rules made thereunder and being one without jurisdiction, following the aforesaid order, the writ petition is liable to be allowed. In the result, writ petition is allowed and the impugned notice issued by the respondent is quashed. However, this order would not come in the way of the respondent requesting the competent authority to take action and it is open to the competent authority to take action, if any, in accordance with law, after providing reasonable opportunity of hearing to the petitioner.