VIJAY PRAKASH; KM.ARATI BHARDWAJ; SANJAY KUMAR BHARDWAJ AND ANR.; MAHENDRA SINGH; SHAILENDRA KUMAR RAJBHAR; MANOJ KUMAR BHARDWAJ AND ANR. Vs. STATE OF U.P.& ORS.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) HEARD Sri L.D. Rajbhar, learned counsel for the petitioners in all the writ petitions, Sri Mahendra Pratap Singh, learned counsel for the Director, State Education, Research and Training Board, U.P. Lucknow and Sri Piyush Shukla, learned Standing Counsel for the State-respondents.

(2.) THESE six writ petitions have been filed by the persons, who claim themselves to be the members of the Denotified tribe (Vimukt Jati), namely, Bhar and Rajbhar, residents of District Azamgarh in the State of Uttar Pradesh. On the basis of their being members of the denotified tribes, the petitioners claim that they are entitled to be treated as members of Scheduled Castes Scheduled Tribes and are entitled to the benefits of reservation provided for in respect of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes candidates. Accordingly the petitioners have prayed for quashing of the declaration under the Government Order dated 20th February, 2004 (as contained in para-4(a) of the guidelines issued for admission to the B.T.C. Course qua the entrance examination of the year 2004, a copy whereof has been enclosed as Annexure-3 to the first writ petition). Under clause 4(a) (Condition of admission), it has been provided that the candidates belonging to the Bhar Castes shall be treated to be members of Backward Class category. It is also prayed that the respondents be directed to provide benefit of reservation to the members of Bhar Castes treating them to be the members of Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes.

(3.) THE dispute between the parties as such is confined to the issue as to whether the Bhar Caste, which is one of the denotified Tribe is to be treated as the Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe for the purposes of providing reservation for admission in B.T.C. Course or else they are the members of the Backward Class Category and therefore the State Government is justified in providing the benefit of reservation under the said category alone for the purposes of admission to the B.T.C. Course.