KHUSHBU Vs. STATE OF MAHARASHTRA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Rule. Rule made returnable forthwith. With the consent of learned counsel appearing for the parties, taken up for final hearing.

(2.) The petitioner claims to be belonging to "Thakur -Scheduled Tribe'. Certificate, certifying the petitioner to be belonging to "Thakur - Scheduled Tribe' has been invalidated by the respondent No.2 - The Scheduled Tribe Certificate Scrutiny Committee, Nandurbar Division, Nandurbar (for short 'the Scrutiny Committee') by its order dated 16/7/2019. The petitioner is, therefore, before this Court for setting aside the said order with a further prayer for directions to the respondent No.2 to grant validity to the petitioner's certificate, certifying her to be of "Thakur - Scheduled Tribe'.

(3.) The learned counsel for the petitioner would submit that, the impugned order is bad in law and, therefore, liable to be set aside. According to him, the respondent No.2 Scrutiny Committee did not give due weight to pre-constitutional documents relied on by the petitioner in support of her claim. The Scrutiny Committee went by area restriction in spite of those having been removed way back in 1976. The school record of the persons who are not related to the petitioner by blood have been given undue importance. According to learned counsel, the Scrutiny Committee gave importance to affinity test, although such test is not a decisive factor to negate the petitioner's claim. The learned counsel ultimately urged for setting aside the impugned order.