NEHA SAINI Vs. STATE OF UTTARAKHAND

JUDGEMENT

(1.) HEARD Mr. Parikshit Saini, Advocate for petitioner and Mr. K.P. Upadhyay, Additional Chief Standing Counsel for State of Uttarakhand.

(2.) THE petitioner is a member of an Other Backward Class, community, (from hereinafter referred to as OBC), namely "Saini". This community is notified as an OBC in the State of Uttarakhand, and there is no dispute regarding this fact. However, petitioner has now married a person outside her caste, who is of a high caste who is also a permanent resident of a different State i.e. of Purnia, which is in the State of Bihar. The two, presently reside in Delhi. Petitioner has a diploma in Russian language from Jawahar Lal Nehru University, Delhi and in pursuance to an advertisement issued by the Union Public Service Commission has applied for a job, which requires proficiency in Russian Language. Some of the posts on which the appointment has to be made are reserved for OBC candidates. Now, the husband of the petitioner is not an OBC, moreover, the State in which the husband of the petitioner claims a "permanent residence" has also not notified "Saini" as an OBC caste. The petitioner, therefore applied for this OBC certificate in the State of Uttarakhand, where she was born, brought up and had done most of her education. This was denied to the petitioner as the Tehsildar Roorkee (district Haridwar, Uttarakhand) has given a "noting" in the application of the petitioner that the petitioner has now married and resides in a different State and therefore, he (i.e. Tehsildar Roorkee) cannot give such a certificate to the petitioner. Aggrieved, the petitioner has filed present writ petition with the following prayer :

(3.) THE State counsel submits that "domicile" is the main issue in the present controversy and since the petitioner has acquired the domicile of her husband by law, the present domicile of petitioner is not in the State of Uttarakhand, but in the State of Bihar and therefore, the only State, which can grant OBC certificate to the petitioner, is the State of Bihar. This in a nutshell is the argument of the State counsel. This Court has already been apprised by the counsel for the petitioner that "Saini" caste is not notified as an OBC in Bihar, and therefore, the petitioner cannot be granted an OBC certificate by the authorities in Bihar.