Babu Shankarrao Gajulwar v. The State Of Maharashtra Through Its Secretary And Others
2025:BHC-AUG:8379-DB
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
BENCH AT AURANGABAD WRIT PETITION NO. 3334 OF 2025 Suresh S/o Shankarrao Gajulwar, Age 54 years, Occu. Service R/o Daregaon, Taluka Degloor, Dist. Nanded
...Petitioner
VERSUS
1. The State of Maharashtra, Through Secretary, Department of Tribal Development, Mantralaya, Mumbai-32.
2. Scheduled Tribe Certificate Scrutiny Committee, Kinwat, Head Office Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar Through its Member Secretary.
3. The Joint Director of Health Sciences (Leprosy & TB), Infront of Vishrantwadi Police Station, Aalandi Road, Yerwada, Pune.
4. The Assistant Director of Health Sciences (Leprosy), Vazirabad, Nanded
...Respondents
WITH WRIT PETITION NO. 3335 OF 2025 Jyoti D/o Hulappa Gajulwar, Age 40 years, Occu. Service R/o Markhael, Taluka Degloor, Dist. Nanded
...Petitioner
VERSUS
1. The State of Maharashtra, Through Secretary, Department of Tribal Development, Mantralaya, Mumbai-32.
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2. Scheduled Tribe Certificate Scrutiny Committee, Kinwat, Head Office Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar Through its Member Secretary.
3. The Chief Executive Officer, Zilla Parishad, Ratnagiri.
...Respondents
WITH WRIT PETITION NO. 3450 OF 2025 Babu S/o Shankarrao Gajulwar, Age 52 years, Occu. Service R/o Daregaon, Taluka Degloor, Dist. Nanded.
...Petitioner
VERSUS
1. The State of Maharashtra, Tribal Development Department Through its Secretary, Mantralaya, Mumbai-400 001.
2. Scheduled Tribe Certificate Scrutiny Committee, Kinwat, Head Office Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar Through its Member Secretary.
3. Superintendent of Police, Nanded Tq. & Dist. Nanded
...Respondents
...
• Mr. Deepak D. Choudhari and Mr. Vijay G. Gangalwad, Advocates for the Petitioner in WP No. 3334 of 2025 & WP No. 3335 of 2025.
• Mr. Sagar S. Phatal, Advocate for the Petitioner in WP No. 3450 of 2025.
• Ms. P. J. Bharad, AGP for Respondents/State in all petitions. ...
CORAM
:
MANGESH S. PATIL & Y. G. KHOBRAGADE, JJ.
DATE : 19.03.2025 2/5
ORDER (MANGESH S. PATIL, J.) :
.
By way of these separate writ petitions, the blood relatives inter se are questioning different orders of the committee refusing to validate their 'Mannervarlu' scheduled tribe certificates by passing separate orders on the same day i.e. 21.02.2025. 2.
Rule in all the matters.
3.
The learned AGP waives service for the contesting respondents.
4.
In order to avoid rigmarole, inasmuch as same evidence has been the subject matter of scrutiny of the committee, we are disposing of these petitions by this common order at the joint request of the parties.
5.
The petitioners - Suresh and Babu are real brothers and the petitioner - Jyoti is their first degree cousin. 6.
Admittedly, there are several validities in the family. Real brothers of Jyoti by name Ashok and Manohar, Ashok's son Avinash, Manohar's daughter Mansi, Jyoti's another brother Vyankat's daughters Gamnashree and Gamyashree possess certificates of validity.
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7.
Similarly, Suresh and Babu's real sister Shobha, Suresh's daughter Aishvarya, Babu's son Gajanan and daughter Pranita and their first degree niece Parvati, daughter of their real brother Ashok possess certificates of validity.
8.
Admittedly, Gamanashree Venkat Gajulwar, Aishwarya Suresh Gajalwar, Gajanan Babu Gajulwar and Pranita Baburao Gajulwar have been held entitled to have certificates of validity by this Court in their respective writ petitions. These are as follows:- Name Writ Petition Nos.
Order Date Gamanashree Venkat Gajulwar 03.08.2018 Aishwarya Suresh Gajalwar 10027 of 2018 31.08.2018 Gajanan Babu Gajulwar 14.01.2021 Pranita Baburao Gajulwar 07.08.2023 9.
Besides, a common vigilance enquiry was conducted in the matter of these petitioners and Babu's son Gajanan and few other individuals. Meaning thereby that the evidence was collected in common in the matter of all these petitioners and the validity holder - Gajanan, albeit for the reasons best known to the committee, it has chosen to pass separate orders. One wonders what made the committee to resort to such duplication of work. At least no reason 4/5
has been mentioned in any of the orders to adopt such unprecedented procedure which ex facie is illogical. 10.
Be that as it may, a common set of evidence has been the subject matter by the scrutiny committee in the matters of these petitioners as well as Gajanan. If on the objective scrutiny, this Court has held Gajanan entitled to have a certificate of validity that in itself is sufficient to allow these petitions, since the petitioners cannot be belonging to a different caste than what Gajanan belongs to. 11.
For the reasons mentioned in the matter of Gajanan, we allow these writ petitions partly, quash and set aside the impugned judgments, and direct the scrutiny committee to issue certificates of validity to all the petitioners.
12.
These validities shall be subject to the final outcome of the matters which the committee has decided to reopen. 13.
The petitioners are not entitled to claim equities. (Y. G. KHOBRAGADE, J.) (MANGESH S. PATIL, J.) jhs/ 5/5