Supreme Court sets aside Bombay HC decision and restores the Scheduled Caste certificate of Amravati MP Navneet Kaur Rana

Today, the Supreme Court (SC) of India set aside the decision of the Bombay High Court which set aside the Scheduled Caste certificate of Navneet Kaur Rana, incumbent MP (Member of Parliament) from Amravati Lok Sabha constituency in Maharashtra. The bench restored the Scheduled caste certificate of Navneet Kaur Rana and said “In the instant case, the Scrutiny Committee duly considered the documents before it and passed its decision complying with principles of natural justice. It did not merit any interference under Article 226. In light of the discussion and the peculiar facts and circumstances of the case, the instant appeals stand allowed and the High Court order is set aside.” The matter was heard today by a two-judge bench of the Supreme Court constituting Justice JK Maheshwari and Justice Sanjay Karol. In a recent development, Navneet Kaur Rana has been given a ticket by the BJP (Bhartiya Janta Party) to contest, in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, from Amravati. 

The SC was hearing an appeal filed by Navneet Kaur Rana challenging the 2021 decision of the Bombay HC canceling and confiscating the ‘Mochi’ caste certificate. The HC also observed that she fraudulently obtained a ‘Mochi’ caste certificate as the records indicated that she belonged to the ‘Sikh-Chamar’ caste. The HC in its judgment said that “In our view, the terms ‘Chamar’ and ‘Sikh Chamar’ are not synonymous. The term ‘Sikh Chamar’ is also not synonymous with the term ‘Mochi’ prescribed under entry 11 to the Schedule II to the Constitution of India (Scheduled Caste), Order 1950.” It further held that “The Scrutiny Committee has no power to interpret any document contrary to the entries in the Schedule to the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950. If such interpretation of the Scrutiny Committee is found contrary to law, shows peversity and if a fraud is committed on the Constitution by an application, this Court has ample power and duty to interfere with such perverse and fraudulently obtained order and to set aside the same.” Being aggrieved by the decision of HC, Rana approached the SC. The matter was heard today and the bench reversed the judgment of the Bombay HC. The Supreme Court granted relief to Navneet Kaur Rana and restored her Scheduled Caste certificate.