Bombay High Court to Decide if Caste Committees Can Cancel Fraudulent Certificates

Mumbai- The Bombay High Court has referred an important legal question to a larger bench: Can caste scrutiny committees cancel caste certificates if they were obtained through fraud or false information?

The referral was made by a Division Bench of Justices Manish Pitale and Y.G. Khobragade at the Aurangabad Bench of the Bombay High Court on August 4. The court was hearing petitions filed by Santosh Anil Kolhe, Sham Anil Kolhe, Sharad Arunrao Kolhe, and Balaji Arunrao Kolhe, all residents of Jamb village in Nanded district.

The issue arose after the Kinwat Scheduled Tribe Certificate Scrutiny Committee in Maharashtra canceled the caste certificates of the appealants, claiming they had used fake documents. The affected individuals challenged this decision, arguing that once a caste certificate is issued, the committee does not have the power to cancel it later.

The petitioners relied on past court rulings stating that only the High Court (under Article 226 of the Constitution) can cancel such certificates. However, the Maharashtra government argued that committees must have the power to cancel certificates obtained through fraud, even if the law doesn’t explicitly say so.

The court noted that different benches of the Bombay High Court have given conflicting judgments on this issue. While misuse of recall powers could create instability, allowing fraud to go unchecked would harm the system. Since scrutiny committees have quasi-judicial powers, they may be better suited than courts to investigate fraud in caste claims.

The court has now framed key questions for a larger bench to decide, including:

1. Can scrutiny committees recall their own orders if fraud is proven?

2. If they have this power, what safeguards should be in place to prevent misuse?

3. Should committees need the High Court’s permission before canceling a certificate?

The case will now be placed before the Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court, who will form a larger bench to settle the matter.