P. Usha Rani vs District Collector and District Magistrate and Another

C.Y. Somayajulu, J.—Petitioner made an application to the 2nd respondent - Mandal Revenue Officer, Armoor for issuance of a Caste Certificate. The Caste Certificate was issued with her maiden surname, describing her as the daughter of Narsimlu, but not as the wife of Bojanna as sought by her in her application. Therefore, she made an application to the 2nd respondent-Mandal Revenue Officer to change her surname and include the name of her husband in place of her father''s name in the paste certificate, to enable her to contest the ensuing Panchayat Elections. Since that application was not considered on the ground that as per the existing system, the caste certificate will have to be issued to the applicant, with original surname; she would have to follow the procedure prescribed in G. O. Ms. (P) No. 819 General Administration (General-C) Department, dated 8-12-1977 for change of her name in the caste certificate.

When the writ petition came up for admission, the learned Judge gave an interim direction to the respondents to issue the community certificate to the petitioner showing her as belonging to B. C. "B" category with her surname as ''P'' and her husband''s name It is stated that such certificate was issued to her.

The contention of the respondents that as per the existing system caste certificate can be issued in the maiden name of the applicant only, cannot be accepted because as per the procedure prescribed by Andhra Pradesh (SC, ST & BCs) Regulation of Issue of Community Certificate Act, 1993 (''the Act'') and the Rules, made there under the essential requirement for issuance of such certificate is the authority, competent to issue the community certificates, satisfying itself about the genuineness of the claim made by the applicant.

Since the authority has to make an enquiry about the genuineness of the claim of the applicant he can verify the caste of the parents of the applicant and the caste of her husband etc. No provision in the Act or the Rules made thereunder which mandates that the caste certificate being issued only in the maiden name of a married woman is brought to my notice. The fact that petitioner belongs to B. C. "B" community is not denied or disputed by the respondents. Though the petitioner made an application as the wife of P. Bojanna, the caste certificate was issued to her describing her as the daughter of Narsimlu. Therefore, she sought for a change in her surname and incorporation of her husband''s name after deleting her father''s name. Judicial notice can be taken of the fact that immediately after marriage women in this part of the Country shed their parents'' surname and gotra and acquire the surnames and gotras of the husband. For that reason, petitioner being a married woman, sought a change of her surname and inclusion of the name of her husband by deleting the name of her father. Had the petitioner been given a caste certificate in her maiden name, and if after her marriage she wanted an amendment in the certificate issued to her the respondents may have been justified in directing her to follow the procedure prescribed in G. O. Ms. (P) No. 819 General Administration (General-C) Department dated 8-12-1977. Since the petitioner, for the first time, sought a caste certificate after her marriage, and since no provision either in the Act or the Rules made thereunder which contemplates the caste certificate of a married woman being issued in her maiden name only is brought to my notice, I do not find any force in the contention of the respondents that petitioner has to follow the procedure prescribed in G. O. Ms. (P) No. 819 dated 8-12-1977 for getting her name changed in the certificate issued by them to her on her application as the wife of Bojanna and should have acceded to her request.

In view of the fact that respondents issued a caste certificate as per the interim orders of this Court, which is in accordance with the prayer in this petition no further orders are necessary in this writ petitions Accordingly, Rule Nisi is made absolute and the writ petition stands disposed of.