Bombay HC directs issuance of caste certificate to adopted minor on single mother’s plea – Times of India

MUMBAI: In a relief to a single woman who had adopted a child, Bombay high court on Women’s Day granted her plea to have a caste certificate issued for her minor son.
The single parent, a 44-year-old doctor, had challenged a 2016 refusal by a deputy district collector at Dharavi division to issue the caste certificate and a November 2017 order by District Caste Certificate Scrutiny Committee in Mumbai that upheld the denial.
A bench of Justices Sunil Shukre and G A Sanap heard her counsel Pradeep Havnur who said the denial of caste certificate to her adopted son—who under law has same rights as a natural born son—was “irrational and arbitrary”.
The HC also heard SS Bhende additional government pleader for the State before directing, for reasons to be given later separately, the deputy collector to issue the adopted child a ‘Hindu Mahyavanshi’ certificate within two weeks of receiving the order. The bench said the certificate will be subject to its validation in accordance with law, by the scrutiny committee.
The deputy collector had said that since the child is adopted, under the Maharashtra Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes Caste Certificate Act, it cannot issue him such a caste certificate.
In 2017 the Caste Scrutiny committee had while rejecting her appeal said “the law for adopted children is not regulated or mentioned.’’ She had adopted the child in 2009.
Her petition invoked the Constitutional provisions of prohibition against discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste etc and also State’s duty to promote educational interests of weaker section for society especially of the SC/ST and protect them from social injustice and exploitation.
The woman said she has her own caste certificate issued to her in 1990 and also the 1993 certificate of validity.