Caste Certificate Issued After Verification Can't Be Invalidated Merely Because Sibling Seeks Scholarship Under Different Caste: Karnataka HC

The Karnataka High Court has observed that the action of a sibling in securing a scholarship under the Backward Class Category cannot invalidate the caste certificate issued to another sibling under a different caste. 

Allowing the petition of one Prabhu Haveri who belonged to Hindu Bhovi caste,  Justice M Nagaprasanna remarked that the 'greed' of the petitioner's brother to claim a scholarship under the Backward Class cannot invalidate the petitioner's caste certificate which was validated by the concerned authorities. 

"The greed of the brother of the petitioner in securing scholarship has led to a situation, where the members of the family, brothers and sisters continued to be Hindu Bhovi, but a sibling is now depicted to be belonging to a backward class, all because of his greed of getting some scholarship. It is trite that such act of securing scholarship cannot mask the caste status of the person, which has been granted, affirmed and re-affirmed by validation every time. The solitary circumstance cannot be projected as the reason for cancellation of the caste certificate." 

The petitioner was issued a caste certificate as Hindu Bhovi after a local inquiry by the Tashildar. However, the said caste certificate was cancelled on the grounds that the brother of the petitioner joined a private college with a scholarship under the Hindu Sunagar caste and that the petitioner claimed the caste status as Hindu Bhovi fraudulently. 

The Social Welfare Department passed an order that the petitioner belongs to Sunagar-Bhovi, Category-I and the caste validation certificate was refused. The petitioner preferred an appeal before an appeal authority, which came to be dismissed. The petitioner thus filed the present petition seeking to quash the order passed by the Social Welfare Department. 

The petitioner contended that in the school leaving certificates, he, his brother and his sister are shown to be Hindu-Bhovi caste. He submitted that the only reason projected for cancelling his caste certificate is an erroneous grant of scholarship in favour of his brother.

The government advocate opposed the plea submitting that Tahsildar who gave a report in favour of the petitioner committed fraud. He has not verified anything before giving the report. However, he admitted that the only reason for refusing the validity certificate was that the brother of the petitioner had secured scholarship belonging to the Sunagar caste.

The Court noted that the brother of the petitioner had claimed a scholarship under Backward Class Category-I from the Department of Backward Class and Minority. While the Court remarked that it was understandable how a mistake of seeking a scholarship would take away the caste status of the petitioner, it noted that the petitioner placed several documents on record to prove that he belongs to the Hindu Bhovi caste. 

It further observed "If the Tahsildar himself has granted the caste certificate to the petitioner after due enquiry as belonging to Hindu Bhovi, the learned counsel appearing for respondent Nos.1 to 4 is now wanting to project that the Tahsildar has granted the said certificate erroneously, and subsequent Tahsildar has granted it correctly. These submissions are without substance."

The Court thus was of the view that the act of petitioner's brother securing scholarship for an educational course by projecting another caste cannot mask the petitioner's caste status, which was granted, affirmed and re-affirmed by validation every time by the authorities.

In view of the above, the Court allowed the petition and quashed the Social Welfare Department's order. 

Case Title: Advocate Srinand A Pachhepure Pallavi S Pachhapure F.V Patil for Petitioners.

Advocate C Jagadish FOR R1 TO R4.

Advocate Shivaraj P Mudhol FOR R5.

Citation No: 2025 LiveLaw (Kar) 98

Case Title: Prabhu Haveri AND The Commissioner For Social Welfare And Appellate Authority & Others.

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