Bombay High Court
BHOOMIKA HARISH UMBARJE AND ORSversusTHE STATE OF MAHARASHTRA THR. ITS SECRETARY, TRIBAL DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT AND ORS
- Disposal
- Allowed
Holding
The Court held that the Scrutiny Committee's order was unsustainable and must be set aside, directing issuance of validity certificates to the petitioners as Koli Mahadev Scheduled Tribe members.
Summary
The petitioners, blood relatives and students, challenged a 25 August 2026 order of the Scheduled Tribes Certificate Scrutiny Committee that invalidated their claim to the Koli Mahadev Scheduled Tribe. They had previously been issued tribe certificates, which the Committee re‑examined after a Vigilance Cell inquiry that highlighted alleged contra‑entries in pre‑Constitution documents. The petitioners argued that numerous paternal relatives already hold valid certificates, affirmed by several earlier High Court judgments, and that the Committee ignored this precedent. The State and the Committee contended that the old documents were more probative and justified the invalidation. The Court examined the prior judgments, the weight of pre‑Constitution records versus validity certificates, and the principle of paternal lineage, concluding that the Committee’s order was unsustainable. Accordingly, the Court quashed the order and directed the issuance of validity certificates to the petitioners as members of the Koli Mahadev Scheduled Tribe.
Issues considered
- The legality of the Scrutiny Committee's order invalidating the petitioners' claim to the Koli Mahadev Scheduled Tribe.
- Whether prior High Court judgments granting tribe status to paternal relatives bind the Scrutiny Committee.
- The relative evidentiary value of pre‑Constitution era documents versus existing validity certificates.
- Whether the petitioners are entitled to validity certificates under the law.
Subjects
- Scheduled Tribe
- Caste Certificate
- Validity Certificate
- Scrutiny Committee
- Vigilance Inquiry
- Genealogy
- Pre‑Constitution Documents
- Judicial Review
- Writ Petition
- Bombay High Court
Judgment
904-WP-4344-2026.doc
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
CIRCUIT BENCH AT KOLHAPUR
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION
WRIT PETITION NO. 4344 OF 2026
1) Bhoomika d/o Harish Umbarje,
Age- 25 years, Occu. - Student,
2) Vedant s/o Vinod Umbarje,
Age- minor, Occu. - Student,
Through his guardian Father,
Vinod s/o Ravindra Umbarje,
Age- 46 years, Occu. - Service,
3) Vishal s/o Manjunath Umbarje,
Age- 18 years, Occu. - Student,
All R/o. - Auj (Mandrup),
Tq. South Solapur, Dist. Solapur. 413221
4) Aryan s/o Deepak Umbarje,
Age- 18 years, Occu. - Student,
All above R/o. - Auj (Mandrup),
Tq. South Solapur, Dist. Solapur. -413221 ...Petitioners.
Versus
1) The State of Maharashtra,
Through: Its Secretary,
Tribal Development Department,
Mantralaya, Mumbai-32.
2) The Scheduled Tribes Certiicate
Scrutiny Committee, Pune CVC Pune,
Pune Division, 5th Floor, C Wing,
Kapil Towers, Near RTO Oice,
Pune - 411 001.
Through its Vice-Chairman, Pune.
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3) State Common Entrance Test Cell,
Maharashtra State, 8th Floor,
New Excelsior Building, A.K. Nayak
Marg, Fort, Mumbai-400 001.
Through it's Commissioner. ...Respondents.
——————
Mr. Omgashad Baburao Boinwad a/w Nikita Bontalwar & Ashwini R. Barad for
the Petitioners.
Mr. S. B. Kalel, AGP for the Respondent-State.
Mr. Nagesh Chavan for Respondent No.3 -CET Cell.
——————
Coram : Sharmila U. Deshmukh &
Neeraj P. Dhote, JJ.
Date : September 03, 2026.
Oral Judgment. : (Per Neeraj P. Dhote, J.)
1. Heard learned counsel for the petitioners, learned AGP appearing
for the respondent-State and the Scrutiny Committee, and learned
counsel appearing for respondent No. 3-CET Cell. By consent of the
learned counsel for the parties, the petition is inally heard at the
admission stage. With their assistance perused the papers on record.
2. By the present writ petition, the petitioners have challenged the
order dated 25.08.2026, passed by the respondent No. 2- Caste Scrutiny
Committee (for short, hereinafter referred to as the Scrutiny
Committee), invalidating the petitioners' claim towards the Koli
Mahadev-Scheduled Tribe.
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3. The petitioners are the blood relatives and cousins of each other.
They all are the students taking education in their respective
educational institutions. The petitioners were issued the tribe
certiicates by the competent authority as belonging to the Koli
Mahadev-Scheduled Tribe. The educational institution, where the
petitioners are studying, referred their caste certiicates to the Scrutiny
Committee for veriication. The petitioners submitted number of
documents in support of their claim including the validity certiicates
issued to their blood relatives either by the Scrutiny Committee or
under the orders of this Court. The Scrutiny Committee referred the
claim of petitioners to the Vigilance Cell for inquiry. The Vigilance Cell
conducted the inquiry and submitted its report. The petitioners were
given an opportunity of hearing by the Scrutiny Committee. After
considering the documents available on record, the Scrutiny Committee
passed the impugned order invalidating the petitioners' tribe claim.
4. It is submitted by learned counsel for the petitioners that, there is
no dispute in respect of the genealogy submitted by the petitioners
before the Scrutiny Committee. The Committee on the basis of the
Vigilance Cell report in some of the blood relatives' tribe claim inquiry,
found the contra entries in the pre-constitution era documents and
therefore invalidated the petitioners' tribe claim. There are 35 validity
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certiicates issued by the Scrutiny Committee to the blood relatives of
the petitioners and 20 blood relatives of the petitioners are issued the
validity certiicates pursuant to the orders of this Court. The Scrutiny
Committee gave more weightage to the contra entries found in the
documents while conducting the Vigilance Cell inquiry in some of the
blood relatives of the petitioners and ignored the validity certiicates
issued to the blood relatives of the petitioners. He submitted that, this
is the clear case which warrants interference by this Court in the
impugned order and petitioners are entitled for validity certiicates
towards their claim.
5. It is submitted by learned AGP appearing for the State and the
Scrutiny Committee that, though there is no dispute in respect of the
genealogy and validity holders in the blood relations of the petitioners,
the Scrutiny Committee found contra entries in the old records of the
blood relatives of the petitioners during the inquiry in the tribe claim of
the petitioners' relative and therefore the Committee has rightly passed
the impugned order. There is no dispute in respect of number of
validities in the blood relations of the petitioners' family from the
paternal side. The Scrutiny Committee had reopened the validities
granted to some of the blood relatives of the petitioners and had issued
the show cause notices, which were challenged before this Court and
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this Court allowed the petitions and set aside the show cause notices
and the decision of this Court is challenged before the Hon'ble Supreme
Court of India and the said challenge is pending. He submitted that
considering the observations in the impugned order, the petition be
dismissed.
6. The copy of genealogy is enclosed to the petition. The genealogy
is reproduced below:
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7. A perusal of the impugned order goes to show that during the
Vigilance inquiry of the petitioners and in the matters of their cousin
sister Sonal Chandrakant Umbarje, the entries of 'Koli' caste is found in
number of documents of the blood relatives / ancestors of the
petitioners and the claim of the petitioners is towards ‘Koli Mahadev’
which is the diferent tribe. The Scrutiny Committee further observed
that, in the school records wherein the entries were of pre-constitution
era, the entries towards the caste 'Mahadev Koli' was found to be in the
diferent ink which suggests interpolation. The Committee further
observed that, contra entries were found during the Vigilance inquiry of
the other blood relatives of the petitioners and the Committee came to
the conclusion that, the old documents is having more probative value
and in the light of the said contra entries, the validity certiicates issued
to the blood relatives of the petitioners cannot be the basis to validate
the petitioners' tribe claim.
8. There cannot be any dispute that, the pre-constitution era
documents are having more probative value. However, the fact remains
that there are more than 50 blood relatives of the petitioners having
the validity certiicates towards the ‘Koli Mahadev’ Scheduled Tribe. The
papers show that, the father of petitioner No. 1 by name Harish Girish
Umbarje and aunt namely Nayna Girish Umbarje had challenged the
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invalidation of their tribe claim towards the ‘Koli Mahadev’ and the
litigation went up to the Hon'ble Apex Court in SLP No. 14730 and
14731 of 1997. The said SLPs came to be disposed of by order dated
17.8.1998 by giving liberty to them to approach the civil court for
declaration of their tribe claim towards the ‘Koli Mahadev.’ Accordingly,
they had instituted the Regular Civil Suit No. 29 of 1999 wherein the
State of Maharashtra and the Scrutiny Committee were the defendants
and after the full-ledged trial the Civil Court (5th Joint Civil Judge
Senior Division, Solapur) decreed the suit by judgment and decree dated
5.09.2001 (copy at page number 103 - Exhibit C) and declared them as
belonging to the ‘Koli Mahadev’-Scheduled Tribe and directed issuance
of the tribe certiicate to them. There is categoric averment in para 5 of
the writ petition that the said Judgment and decree of the learned Civil
Court was never challenged and it has attained inality. There is no
contra avernment to the said avernment.
9. Nilappa Mangaleshwar Umbarje who is the cousin uncle of the
petitioners had to approach this Court in Writ Petition No. 6561 of 2008
against the invalidation of his tribe claim by the Scrutiny Committee by
order dated 5.07.2008 and this Court by judgment and order dated
5.08.2009 allowed the petition and set aside the order of invalidation
passed by the Scrutiny Committee and directed to validate the tribe
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claim of the said petitioner as belonging towards ‘Koli Mahadev’
Scheduled Tribe. The observations in the said order goes to show that,
this Court considered the contra entries in several old documents such
as the school record of blood relatives of Nilappa. This Court in the said
order observed that, the reliance placed by the Scrutiny Committee on
the report of the Vigilance inquiry conducted in the case of Pundalik
Gursiddappa Umbarje who was the uncle of Nilappa was misplaced as
the Division Bench of this Court in Writ Petition No. 7846 of 2003 iled
by Pundalik Umbarje set aside the order of invalidation passed by the
Scrutiny Committee and declared him to be belonging to ‘Koli Mahadev’
Scheduled Tribe. It is observed in the said judgment that, the Division
Bench in the case of Pundalik observed that some of the close relatives
of the petitioner (Pundalik) were granted certiicates by Scrutiny
Committee certifying that they belong to ‘Koli Mahadev’ Scheduled
Tribe. It further observed that it must be presumed that while declaring
Pundalik Umbarje as ‘Koli Mahadev’, this Court perused the entire
record and the Scrutiny Committee was not successful in persuading
this Court to dismiss the petition on the basis of the inquiry report on
which the Scrutiny Committee had placed reliance. This Court observed
that, the Scrutiny Committee erred in not placing reliance on school
record of several relatives of the petitioners from paternal side
pertaining to pre-constitution era showing them as ‘Mahadev Koli’ or
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‘Hindu Mahadev Koli’.
10. The copies of the judgments / orders in Writ Petition No. 5517 of
2022 (Abhishek Mahendra Umbarje), Writ Petition No. 5519 of 2022
(Dhiren Rajesh Umbarje) and Writ Petition No. 5522 of 2022
(Chandrakant Raghunath Umbarje) decided on 23.09.2022, Writ Petition
No. 2388 of 1994 (Mahesh Bhimshankar Umbarje) decided on
29.07.1994, Writ Petition No. 9072 of 2018 (Kum. Madhavi Shashikant
Umbarje) decided on 13.08.2018, Writ Petition No. 2671 of 2020 (Kiran
Rajkumar Umbarje and Others) decided on 31.03.2022, Writ Petition No.
6182 of 2010 (Bhalchandra S. Umbarje) decided on 29.11.2010 and Writ
Petition No. 3735 of 2022 (Kum. Arya Vaibhav Umbarje) decided on
31.03.2022, shows that this Court set aside the orders passed by the
Scrutiny Committee invalidating their claims towards the ‘Koli Mahadev’
Scheduled Tribe and directed issuance of the validity certiicates in their
favor. This Court in the judgment dated 31.03.2022 in WP No. 3735 of
2022 (Kumari Arya Vaibhav Umbarje) observed that, the validity
certiicate issued to Nilappa which attained inality was now a
conclusive proof of social status of Nilappa towards the ‘Koli Mahadev’
Scheduled Tribe. It further observed that, it is the underlying principle
that paternal relatives take the same caste as their common ancestors
on the basis of their consanguinity. The said petitioners are seen to be
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blood relatives of the petitioners from paternal side, from the
undisputed genealogy.
11. In view of the above discussion, it is clear that there are several
blood relatives from the paternal side of the petitioners having the
validity certiicates, some issued by Scrutiny Committee and some
issued pursuant to the directions of this Court. Accepting the
submissions of the learned AGP that, the Scrutiny Committee has iled
the proceedings before the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India against the
judgment and order passed by this Court setting aside the show cause
notices issued to the blood relatives of the petitioner for cancelling
their validity, it is not in dispute that, the said judgment and order of
this Court is not set aside or stayed as on date. The above discussion
goes to show that, in the earlier litigations in respect of the blood
relatives of the petitioners, this Court considered the contra entries
found in the old records of the blood relatives of petitioners and by
considering the same, the orders of invalidation of the tribe claim
passed by the Scrutiny Committee came to be set aside. Under such
facts and circumstances of the matter, denying the validity certiicate to
the petitioners would be against the settled principle under the law. In
the backdrop of the above discussion, the impugned order passed by
the Scrutiny Committee is unsustainable and needs to be set aside and
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direction for issuance of validity certiicates is warranted. Hence we
pass the following order.
ORDER
a) The Writ Petition is allowed.
b) The impugned order dated 25.08.2026 passed by the
respondent No. 2- Scrutiny Committee is hereby quashed
and set aside.
c) The respondent No. 2- Scrutiny Committee is directed to
issue the validity certiicate to the petitioners as
belonging to the ‘Koli Mahadev’ Scheduled Tribe by
04.09.2026 before noon.
[Neeraj P. Dhote, J.] [Sharmila U. Deshmukh, J.]
Digitally signed
by HARISH
HARISH VITHAL
VITHAL CHAUDHARI
CHAUDHARI Date:
2026.09.03
19:11:33 +0530
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