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Judgment
[Per Nitin B. Suryawanshi, J.]
. Rule. Rule made returnable forthwith with the consent of the parties.
This Petition challenges the decision of the Committee in Case No. JAG/EDN/158-02/W.P.-4800-05 dated 26.03.2008 rejecting the claim of the petitioner that he belongs to ‘Thakur, Scheduled Tribe’.
Before the Committee, the petitioner has relied upon the pre-constitutional entry of ‘Thakur’ caste in his grandfather’s School Leaving Certificate dated 01.09.1926.
The Committee has rejected the claim of the petitioner as the petitioner failed to pass the affinity test. So also the petitioner’s predecessors did not come from tribal area.
Heard learned Advocate for the petitioner, learned AGP for State instructed by the Law Officer of the Committee. Perused the original record made available by learned AGP.
The approach of the Committee in discarding the pre-constitutional document i.e. school leaving certificate of petitioner’s grandfather, wherein on 01.09.1926 the caste is mentioned as ‘Thakur’ is erroneous and the reason given by the Committee is unacceptable.
Another old document relied upon by the petitioner is the sale deed executed by his grandfather Daulat Budha Thakur on 24.02.1948, wherein his caste is mentioned as ‘Thakur’. This document is also wrongly discarded by the Committee.
In the light of the aforestated documents on record, the Committee has committed an error in rejecting the pre-constitutional documents, wherein the caste of the petitioner’s grandfather is referred as ‘Thakur’.
These documents have greater probative value and the Committee ought to have given due weightage to them. Fact remains that petitioner’s real brother Nilesh S/o Prakash Thakur is granted validity certificate by the respondent No. 2 – Committee on 01.02.2020 on the same set of documents, which were relied upon by the petitioner.
In light of subsequent issuance of Validity Certificate in favour of petitioner’s real brother, the petitioner is also entitled for validity of his tribe claim.
In the light of the decision of the Hon’ble Supreme Court in Mah. Adiwasi Thakur Jamat Swarakshan Samiti Vs. State of Maharashtra and Others; 2023 SCC OnLine SC 326, if the blood relatives are granted validity, then on the ground of parity, the petitioner is also entitled for the validity.
In view of authoritative pronouncement of the Hon’ble Supreme Court in Anand Vs. Committee for Scrutiny and Verification of Tribe Claims (2012)(1) SCC 113, and Jaywant Dilip Pawar Vs. State of Maharashtra & Ors, 2018 (5) ALL MR 975 (S.C.), The Committee’s reasons that the petitioner failed to clear the affinity test and area restrictions, cannot be sustained.
For the aforestated reasons, petitioner is entitled for validity certificate. Hence, writ petition is allowed. The impugned order is quashed and set aside.
The Committee is directed to forthwith issue Validity Certificate to the petitioner that he belongs to 'Thakur, Scheduled Tribe’.
Rule is made absolute in above terms with no order as to costs.