Bombay High Court urges State to explore if mother’s caste status can be used to obtain caste certificate

The Bombay High Court recently asked the Maharashtra government to form a committee to explore the possibility of allowing persons to provide details of their mother's caste or social status on the 'Aaple Sarkar' portal, in exceptional circumstances for obtaining a caste certificate [Swanubhuti Jain v State of Maharashtra]..The Bench of Justices Ravindra Ghughe and Ashwin D Bhobe directed the government to consider the modification of the portal towards that end."We call upon the State Government to consider the said aspect and since it involves a decision to be taken by the Government, it would be appropriate for the Government to constitute a proper committee which is assisted with data/information, so as to consider, whether a clause in exceptional circumstances, can be entered in the ‘Aaple Sarkar’ portal to enable an applicant to tender the details of the mother’s social status," the Court said in its order..The Aaple Sarkar portal is a one-stop platform that allows citizens to avail various government services, including the application for caste certificates. The case came before the Court when Swanubhuti Jeevraj Jain, a 30-year-old woman, sought a caste certificate based on her mother's claim of belonging to the Shimpi community, categorized as Other Backward Class (OBC). Jain’s request was rejected as the portal only accepts caste details of the father. In her petition, Jain sought a direction to the State government to amend the Aaple Sarkar portal to allow users to enter their mother’s caste details in order to avail a caste certificate..She argued that the portal should be amended to allow applicants to provide mother's caste details, particularly in cases where the mother’s social status is relevant to the applicant’s eligibility.However, the Court dismissed the petition, observing that Jain had failed to present sufficient evidence to show that she was raised exclusively by her mother or that her upbringing was influenced by her mother’s caste status. The Court said that Jain’s father, a bank officer, had funded her education and the family had lived together in the same residence. Additionally, Jain’s mother had only recently obtained her OBC certificate in 2022, after which Jain applied for the caste certificate. The Court concluded that the petitioner’s request appeared to be a strategic attempt to take advantage of her mother’s OBC status despite being raised in her father’s open category household."We find that this petition has been filed for self-serving purposes. We also sense that an attempt to misrepresent has been made. However, we wish to give a ‘quietus’ to this issue," the Court said while dismissing the plea.Nevertheless, the Court also emphasized the need for review of the portal’s provisions. Therefore, it called for the formation of a committee to study whether the portal could be amended to accept mother’s caste details in exceptional cases..Advocate Aditya Pratap along with advocate Abha Singh instructed by Aditya Pratap Law Offices appeared for the petitioner.Additional Government Pleader VM Mali appeared for the State..[Read Order]