Disposed

B Simhachalam v. State of Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh HC20 Jun 2022WP/31112/2017

Case brief

AI extract

What is this about?

The High Court disposed of a Writ Petition challenging the inaction of authorities in enquiring into false Bentho Oriya Caste Certificates held by non-tribals. The Court directed the District Collector to accept a comprehensive representation and conduct an enquiry into the cited cases within three months, issuing notice to the accused officials.

What did the court decide?

The writ petition was disposed of; the District Collector was directed to consider a comprehensive representation within two weeks and conduct an enquiry within three months, issuing notice to the acc

B Simhachalam Vs State of Andhra… — Pension and Retirement Benefits | Andhra Pradesh HC (2022)

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THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE M. GANGA RAO

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WRIT PETITION No.31112 OF 2017

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ORDER:

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This Writ Petition is filed to issue a Writ of Mandamus declaring the inaction of the 3^rd respondent in causing enquiry under the Andhra Pradesh (Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Backward Classes) Regulation of Issue of Community Certificates Act, 1993 (for short ‘the Act’) upon the petitioners’ representations/complaints dated 30.05.2017, 16.08.2017, 17.08.2017, 22.02.2016, 22.06.2016, 19.10.2015 and 21.09.2015 made against the fraudulent claimants holding Bentho Oriya Caste Certificates by the people who have the surnames namely Dolai, Gadde, Sahu, Majji, Pollai, Pradhan residing within the revenue division of the respondents 4 to 6 as well as Mandals of respondents 7 to 22 including the respondents 23 to 25, as illegal and arbitrary.

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The case of the petitioners is that they are members of the association namely Adivasi Samkshema Parishad and they are espousing the case of the real tribals who are affected in the hands of false caste certificate holders existing in the name of ‘Bentho Oriya’. Their complaint is that the respondents 23 to 25 obtained false Bentho Oriya Caste (ST) certificates and got Government jobs though they belong to Vaddi caste which comes under BC category existing in the Mandal area of the respondents 7 to 22. The Vaddi caste people are culturally above the aboriginal tribes and they nowhere match to the tribal culture and they used to do works like digging, stone crushing, de-silting of wells, etc. Then, the petitioners moved pillar to post ventilating their grievance against

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the unofficial respondents and also submitted various representations. But, the respondent authorities have not taken any action on their representations and allowed the people who have obtained fake Bentho Oriya Caste certificates without enquiring into the issue. This Court also appointed the Commission to look into the issue. The respondent authorities are not enquiring into the matter on the ground that Commission’s report is awaiting. Even though the Government specifically directed the authorities to enquire the persons who have obtained false Bentho Oriya Caste certificates wherever complaints have received against them, the respondent authorities are not causing any enquiry, which is illegal and arbitrary. Therefore, the inaction of the respondent authorities is challenged in the present writ petition.

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Heard the learned counsel for the petitioners and the learned Assistant Government Pleader for Social Welfare.

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Learned Assistant Government Pleader for Social Welfare states that the petitioners have not submitted any effective representation ventilating their grievance and nothing is referred in the writ affidavit to that effect.

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Having considered the facts and circumstances of the case, submissions of the learned counsel and on perusal of the record, this Court, in the interest of justice, felt it appropriate to dispose of the writ petition giving liberty to the petitioners to approach the 3^rd respondent – District Collector by way of comprehensive representation ventilating their grievance with reference to the

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provisions of the Act and the Rules made thereunder and also Commissioner’s report to enquire into the status of the unofficial respondents who said to have been obtained fake certificates and got Government jobs, within a period of two (2) weeks from the date of receipt of a copy of this order. On submission of such representation, the 3^rd respondent – District Collector is directed to consider the same by giving notice to the unofficial respondents 23 to 25 before conducting enquiry and take appropriate action as per the provisions of the Act and the Rules made thereunder as expeditiously as possible, preferably within a period of three (3) months thereafter and communicate the same to the petitioners.

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