Bombay High Court
TANMAY JITENDRA GHOTIversusTHE STATE OF MAHARASHTRA THR THE SECRETARY AND ORS
- Decided
- Disposal
- Dismissed
Holding
The Court dismissed the petition, holding that the petitioner’s claim had been invalidated and he had approached the wrong bench, so no direction could be issued to admit him under the Scheduled Tribe category without a certificate.
Summary
The petitioner, Tanmay, sought a direction from the High Court to allow his candidature for MBBS/BDS admission under the Scheduled Tribe (ST) category without a Caste Validity Certificate, citing urgency due to the CAP Round 3 schedule. He had applied for a Tribe Validity Certificate on 11 December 2025, which was rejected by the Scheduled Tribe Certificate Scrutiny Committee on 30 July 2026, and the State CET Cell subsequently re‑classified his application to the Open category on 18 August 2026. The petitioner relied on two earlier orders of the Court—one dated 24 August 2026 and another dated 8 September 2026—but those orders dealt with cases where the Scrutiny Committee had not yet decided the validity claim. The Court observed that the petitioner approached the wrong bench (the Bombay bench instead of the Aurangabad bench) and that his claim had already been invalidated, rendering his request untimely. Consequently, the Court dismissed the writ petition without costs, holding that no relief could be granted in the circumstances.
Issues considered
- Whether the High Court can direct the State CET Cell to consider the petitioner’s candidature under the Scheduled Tribe category without a Caste Validity Certificate during the pendency of the petition.
- Whether the petitioner’s delay in approaching the appropriate bench and the prior invalidation of his tribe validity claim preclude any relief.
Subjects
- Scheduled Tribe
- Caste Validity Certificate
- Centralized Admission Procedure
- Writ Petition
- Urgency
- Jurisdiction
- Procedural delay
Judgment
904-wp-12698-2026.doc
jsn
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION
WRIT PETITION NO.12698 OF 2026
Tanmay S/o. Jitendra Ghoti ...Petitioner
JITENDRA
SHANKAR Versus
NIJASURE
Digitally signed by
JITENDRA SHANKAR
NIJASURE The State of Maharashtra & Ors. ...Respondents
Date: 2026.09.28
18:55:46 +0530
----------
Ms. Preeti Rane with Ms. Himani Kavi for the Petitioner.
Ms. Megha Gowalani with Ms. Saharsh Manyar for the CET Cell.
Mr. P.P. Kakade, Addl. G.P. with Ms. Priyanka Chavan, AGP for the
State.
----------
CORAM : R.I. CHAGLA AND
FIRDOSH P. POONIWALLA, JJ.
DATE : 24TH SEPTEMBER, 2026.
O R D E R:
1. By this Writ Petition, the Petitioner is seeking a direction
to Respondent No. 3 - State CET Cell to consider the candidature of
the Petitioner in the ongoing admission process for the MBBS/BDS
course from Scheduled Tribe category without insisting upon the
Caste Validity Certificate during the pendency of the present Petition.
2. This Petition has been moved on the ground of urgency
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904-wp-12698-2026.doc
in view of the schedule of CAP Round 3 providing for online
registration commencing from 22nd September 2026 and till 26th
September 2026.
3. The Petitioner, who had applied for Tribe Validity
Certificate to the Scheduled Tribe Certificate Scrutiny Committee No.
1, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar on 11th December 2025, and the Tribe
Validity Claim of the Petitioner having been invalidated by the
Scrutiny Committee on 30th July 2026, has chosen not to move the
appropriate Bench, viz. the Aurangabad Bench of this Court seeking
appropriate directions with regard to the impugned Order dated 30th
July 2026 and his challenge in respect thereof. This particularly
considering that the Petitioner sought to participate in the
Centralized Admission Procedure (CAP) for admission to MBBS/BDS
courses for Academic Year 2026–2027 and was well aware of the CAP
Round Schedule.
4. It is pertinent to note that the Respondent No. 3 - State
CET Cell, has already converted the Application of the Petitioner from
Scheduled Tribe category to Open category on 18th August 2026.
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5. The Petitioner's reliance on Order dated 24th August
2026 passed by the Nagpur Bench of this Court, where the Petitioner’
category in the admission process was converted to Open from the
Scheduled Tribe by the State CET Cell, and direction was issued to
the State CET Cell to consider the candidature of the Petitioner from
Scheduled Tribe category for participation in ongoing admission
process, is misplaced. That was a case where the Validity Claim had
not yet been decided by the Scrutiny Committee. Further, the reliance
placed by the Petitioner on the Order dated 8th September 2026
passed by this Court in Writ Petition No.11963 of 2026 is also
misplaced, considering that in that case, the Petitioner had moved the
Aurangabad Bench of this Court as the Scrutiny Committee had not
yet decided the Tribe Validity Claim of the Petitioner and the
Aurangabad Bench had accordingly granted six months to the
Scrutiny Committee to decide the Tribe Claim of the Petitioner.
6. In our view, the Petitioner has belatedly approached this
Court seeking directions to the State CET Cell to allow the Petitioner
to participate in the ongoing admission process for the MBBS/BDS
Course from Scheduled Tribe category without insisting upon the
Caste Validity Certificate during pendency of the Petition. The Tribe
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Validity Claim of the Petitioner having been invalidated by the
Scrutiny Committee way back on 30th July 2026, and the lack of
measures taken by the Petitioner in so far as seeking directions from
the appropriate Bench, viz. the Aurangabad Bench, with regard to its
challenge in respect thereof, this Petition deserves to be dismissed.
7. Accordingly, the Writ Petition is dismissed. There shall be
no order as to costs.
[ FIRDOSH P. POONIWALLA, J. ] [ R.I. CHAGLA J. ]
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