Bombay High Court
GANGAPRASAD HANMANT PALLEWARversusTHE STATE OF MAHARASHTRA THR THE SECRETARY GENERAL ADMINISTRATION AND ORS
- Decided
- Disposal
- Disposed Off
Holding
The Court directed that the government resolution be made applicable to Scheduled Tribes and ordered provisional admission of the petitioner pending the final tribe validity decision.
Summary
The petitioner, a Scheduled Tribe candidate, sought urgent relief after the State CET Cell failed to cancel his admission to an engineering college despite the expiry of the deadline for submitting a Tribe Validity Certificate. The Court noted earlier orders directing the Scheduled Tribe Certificate Scrutiny Committee to decide the petitioner's claim by the end of September 2026 and a government resolution granting a six‑month period for caste certificate submission to reserved categories. Relying on a Nagpur Bench decision, the Court held that the same six‑month benefit should extend to Scheduled Tribes and directed the State to apply the resolution accordingly. Consequently, the Court ordered the State CET Cell to provisionally admit the petitioner without the Tribe Validity Certificate, subject to the final decision of the Scrutiny Committee. The petition to amend the relief sought was allowed, and the writ petition was disposed without costs.
Issues considered
- Whether the government resolution on a six‑month period for submission of caste validity certificates should be extended to Scheduled Tribe candidates.
- Whether the petitioner is entitled to provisional admission pending the final decision of the Scheduled Tribe Certificate Scrutiny Committee.
- Whether the petition may be amended to delete a respondent and a prayer clause.
Subjects
- Scheduled Tribe
- Caste Certificate
- Provisional Admission
- Government Resolution
- Urgent Relief
- Writ Petition
- CET Cell
Judgment
501-WP 11892.2026.doc
Kavita S.J.
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION
WRIT PETITION NO. 11892 OF 2026
Gangaprasad Hanmant Pallewar …Petitioner
Versus
The State of Maharashtra & Ors., …Respondents
----------
Mr. Sahil Choudhari for the Petitioner.
Smt. Vaishali S. Nimbalkar, AGP for Respondent – State.
MR. Nikhil Chavan for Respondent No.2 – CET Cell.
----------
CORAM : R.I. CHAGLA AND
FIRDOSH P. POONIWALLA, JJ.
DATE : 8th SEPTEMBER, 2026.
ORDER :
1. The learned Counsel for the Petitioner has sought leave
to amend the Petition by deleting Respondent No. 4 – The Scheduled
Tribe Certificate Scrutiny Committee, Kinwat, Headquarter at
Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, as well as prayer clause ‘E’ to the
Petition.
2. Accordingly, leave is granted.
KAVITA
SUSHIL
JADHAV
Digitally signed
by KAVITA
SUSHIL JADHAV
Date: 2026.09.09
18:24:26 +0530
3. The Petitioner shall carry out the amendment to the
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Petition in the course of today. Re-verification is dispensed with.
4. Rule. Rule made returnable forthwith. Heard by consent
of the parties.
5. This Petition has been filed on the grounds of urgency in
view of the Petitioner, as per the schedule of Respondent No. 2 - State
CET Cell, requiring to submit the Scheduled Tribe Validity Certificate
on or before 7th September 2026. Although this date has expired, the
Respondent No. 2 - State CET Cell has till date not cancelled the
allotment to the Petitioner in Respondent No. 3 - College of
Engineering Pune.
6. The Tribe Validity claim of the Petitioner has not yet been
decided by the Scheduled Tribes Certificate Scrutiny Committee. By
an order dated 12th March 2026 passed by this Court (Aurangabad
Bench) in Writ Petition No. 2719 of 2026 filed by the present
Petitioner, this Court has directed the Respondent – Scrutiny
Committee to decide the Tribe Claim of the Petitioner as
expeditiously as possible and preferable by the end of September
2026, in accordance with law and on it’s own merits. This was upon
taking into consideration that the Tribe Claim of the Petitioner is
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pending before the Scrutiny Committee since 19th January, 2026.
7. This Court in Writ Petition No. 11628 of 2026, by an
order dated 3rd September 2026, considered the Government
Resolution dated 2nd July 2026, which had granted a period of six
months from the date of admission to the candidates belonging to
reserved categories, viz. SEBC and OBC, for submitting Caste
Certificates and Caste Validity Certificates.
8. This Court relying upon a decision of this Court (Nagpur
Bench) in Aditi D/o Ramsing Jadhao Vs. The Vice-Chairman/Member
Secretary, Scheduled Tribe Caste Certificate Scrutiny Committee,
Yavatmal & Anr.1, had not found any reason as to why the benefit of
six months should not be granted to other categories such as
Scheduled Tribes, Scheduled Castes, De-notified Tribes (Vimukta
Jatis), and Nomadic Tribes.
9. This Court had accordingly, considered it appropriate, in
these circumstances and in the interest of the students, to direct the
Respondent-State to take a decision on making the said Government
Resolution dated 2nd July 2026 applicable to the aforesaid
1 Writ Petition No. 6545 of 2026 order dated 24th August 2026
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categories. Thereafter, the Respondent-State issued a Government
Resolution dated 4th September 2026 granting benefit to the
aforesaid categories other than Scheduled Tribes and revising the
time period from six months to three months for submission of the
Caste Validity Certificate to the Institutions.
10. Considering that the Petitioner claims to belong to the
Scheduled Tribe and the aforesaid Government Resolutions have not
been made applicable to Scheduled Tribes, we direct the Respondent-
State to take a decision on making these Government Resolutions
applicable to Scheduled Tribes as well.
11. The Aurangabad Bench of this Court, vide order dated
12th March 2026, has directed the Respondent – Scrutiny Committee
to decide the Tribe Claim of the Petitioner as expeditiously as possible
and preferable by the end of September 2026, in accordance with
law and on it’s own merits, in view of which the Petitioner has not
been able to submit the Tribe Validity Certificate as per the requisites
of the Respondent No. 2 - State CET Cell.
12. Accordingly, we direct the State CET Cell to consider the
admission of the present Petitioner from the Scheduled Tribe
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category to the B.E./B.Tech. Course in the Respondent No. 3 - College
and grant provisional admission without insisting upon submission of
the Tribe Validity Certificate. This provisional admission shall be
subject to the final outcome of the Tribe Validity claim of the
Petitioner before the Scrutiny Committee.
13. The Writ Petition is disposed of in these terms. No order
as to costs.
[FIRDOSH P. POONIWALLA, J.] [R.I. CHAGLA, J.]
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