The Hindu : National : Non-tribal can't claim benefits of ST on marriage: Supreme Court

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Thursday, Feb 16, 2006

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National

Non-tribal can't claim benefits of ST on marriage: Supreme Court

Legal Correspondent

Apex court condemns issuing SC/ST certificates in a routine manner "Offshoots of the wedlock of a tribal woman married to a non-tribal husband cannot claim ST status"

New Delhi: The Supreme Court has held that a non-tribal man married to a Scheduled Tribe woman cannot claim the status of Scheduled Tribe for seeking employment in the Government under the reserved category.

A Bench, comprising Justice H.K. Sema and Justice A. R. Lakshmanan, said "the condition precedent for granting tribe certificate being that one must suffer disabilities wherefrom one belongs. The offshoots of the wedlock of a tribal woman married to a non-tribal husband (forward class) cannot claim Scheduled Tribe status" as such offshoot was brought up in the atmosphere of Forward Class and he was not subjected to any disability. "A person not belonging to the Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes claiming himself to be a member of such caste by procuring a bogus caste certificate is a fraud on the Constitution of India."

Writing the judgment, Justice Sema said, "the impact of procuring bogus caste certificate and obtaining appointment/admission from the reserved quota will have far-reaching grave consequences. The meritorious reserved category candidate may be deprived of reserved category for whom the post is reserved."

The Bench said, "the reserved post will go into the hands of non-deserving candidates and in such cases it would be violative of the mandate of Articles 14 [right to equality] and 21 [right to life and personal liberty] of the Constitution."

Deprecating the practice of getting bogus caste certificates, the Bench said, "the SC and ST is not a bounty to be distributed. To sustain the claim, one must show that he/she suffered disabilities — socially, economically and educationally cumulatively." The Bench said that the authority concerned issuing such certificates in a routine manner would be committing dereliction of Constitutional duty.

It said the object of various provisions in the Constitution was to provide preferential treatment for the SCs and STs having regard to the economic and educational backwardness and other disabilities. The transplantation of outsiders as members of the ST might dilute their way of life apart from such persons not suffering any disabilities.

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