- (1.) TWO reliefs have been sought in these proceedings under Article 226 of the Constitution. The first is a challenge to the caste certificate dated 22 November 2013 issued to the fourth respondent while the second, which is in the alternate, is for a direction to the State Level Caste Scrutiny Committee to decide the appeal filed by the petitioner challenging the grant of the caste certificate to the fourth respondent. Until then the petitioner seeks a direction that the fourth respondent should not be allowed to contest the election from Agra reserved seat for the 16th Lok Sabha as a scheduled caste candidate.
(2.) FOR convenience of reference, we extract the prayers which are as follows: " i) to issue writ order or direction in the nature of certiorari quashing the caste certificate of scheduled caste no.152134012347 dated 22 -11 -2013 issued in the name of Maharaj Singh Dhanger S/o Vidya Shanker Dhanger by District Magistrate Agra. (Annexure No. 25 of the writ petition.) or issue a writ order or direction in the nature of mandamus directing the state level caste scrutiny committee Lucknow to decide the petition of the petitioner challenging the caste certificate No. 152134012347 dated 22 -11 -2013 issued in the name of Maharaj Singh Dhanger S/o Vidya Shanker Dhanger and till the decision of the appeal the respondent No. 4 should not be allowed to contest the election from the Agra reserved seat in the Sixteenth Lok Sabha elections as a scheduled caste candidate."
(3.) INSOFAR as the first prayer is concerned, there are two orders passed by Division Benches of this Court. The first of those two orders dated 16 December 2013 was passed in a writ petition filed by the petitioner to the present proceedings (Writ -C No. 68824 of 2013). By the order of the Division Bench dated 16 December 2013, the State Level Caste Scrutiny Committee was directed to dispose of the proceedings filed at the behest of the petitioner, preferably within a period of four months of the receipt of the representation. A second writ petition came up before the present Division Bench which was filed by All India Schedule Caste/Schedule Tribe Youth Association and another (Writ -C No.17949 of 2014). While disposing of the second writ petition, this Division Bench by its judgement dated 27 March 2014 observed as follows: "Consequently, the facts as they emerge before the Court would indicate that the legality of the caste certificate which has been granted to the fifth respondent is now a subject matter of the decision of the State Level Caste Scrutiny Committee and orders have been passed by a Coordinate Bench on 16 December 2013, in a proceeding where the same caste certificate was called into question, directing the Committee to carry out a scrutiny and to arrive at a decision in accordance with law. Hence, it would not be appropriate for this Court to enter into the merits of the grievance of the petitioners in these proceedings, particularly since the validity of the caste certificate which was granted to the fifth respondent is being enquired into by the State Level Caste Scrutiny Committee. However, we deem it appropriate in the interest of justice to direct that the Committee shall endeavour to dispose of the proceedings expeditiously within the time schedule set out in the order passed by the Division Bench on 16 December 2013.";