CHENNAI: The Madras High Court has questioned the Erode District Collector on how scheduled caste certificates were issued to persons belonging to the Malayali community and residing in Erode District of Tamil Nadu.
The bench of Chief Justice Manindra Mohan Shrivastava and Justice G Arul Murugan directed the Tamil Nadu govt to explain how Scheduled Tribe (ST) certificates were issued to persons belonging to the Malayali community residing in Erode, while only those residing in the districts of Dharmapuri, North Arcot, Pudukottai, Salem, South Arcot, and Tiruchirappalli are eligible for ST status.
The Bench noted that any inclusion or exclusion in the Scheduled Tribe list of a State can be done only by way of a parliamentary enactment under Article 342 of the Constitution. The court thus observed that the State’s recommendation, without any legislative exercise could not be the basis for seeking a community certificate.
The court was hearing a petition filed by P Deepa, a resident of Erode, seeking issuance of an ST community certificate on the ground that the state govt, on March 17, made a recommendation to the Union government for the inclusion of the Malayali community in Erode also on the List of Scheduled Tribes in Tamil Nadu.
The petitioner also submitted that community certificates were being issued to persons belonging to the Malayali community and residing in Erode by the Revenue Divisional Officer, Erode.
“It is trite law that inclusion or exclusion in the list of ST in relation to any state could be done only by way of parliamentary enactment under Article 342 of the Constitution. The recommendation made by the state, by itself, without such legislative exercise, could not be made a basis to seek issuance of community certificates,” the first bench of Chief Justice Manindra Mohan Shrivastava and Justice G Arul Murugan said.
“The petitioners are claiming the benefit on the basis that a large number of such community certificates are being issued to persons belonging to the Malayali community, who are permanent residents of Erode.
A total of 14 community certificates issued by the authorities from time to time have been annexed,” the bench said.
The court granted four weeks’ time to the government to file a reply. The court directed that the government’s reply should clearly state under what circumstances those community certificates annexed to the petition and referred to herein above were issued by the revenue divisional officer, Erode district.
