MAMTA DEVI Vs. STATE OF BIHAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Heard learned Counsel for the Petitioner, the State and the State Election Commission.

(2.) The Petitioner is aggrieved by the order dated 6.3.2011 passed by the Block Development Officer, Roh cancelling her caste certificate. Further challenge is to the order dated 7.3.2011 passed by the Returning Officer rejecting her nomination for the post of Mukhiya of Roh Gram Panchayat.

(3.) It is submitted that the Petitioner originally professed allegiance to the Muslim faith and belonged to "Sheikh" which is a general category. She married Sri Sanjay Kumar Malakar in 1991. The latter belonged to the "Mali" caste, a notified backward caste. Social acceptance was granted to her by the caste of her husband. Three daughters and two sons have been born out of the wedlock. In the year 2001 the post of Mukhiya in Ron Gram Panchayat was unreserved. The Petitioner successfully contested the elections. At that time also she had been issued a backward caste certificate, a status acquired through the marriage. In 2006 she again contested for the post as a reserved category candidate successfully. In 2011 Panchayat Elections she was again issued a caste certificate on 25.2.2011 that she belonged to the "Mali" caste as the seat was in the reserved category. This has been engineered to be cancelled at the behest of political rivals writ large in the actions by the cancellation order having been issued on 6.3.2011, a Sunday. The order was additionally in complete violation of the principles of natural justice, a fact unequivocally admitted by the Block Development Officer in Para 21. of his counter affidavit. As a sequel to the same, her nomination has been rejected the next day. The contention therefore is that the order of cancellation dated 6.3.2011 being bad on the very face of it, the Petitioner is entitled to acceptance of her nomination.