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Supreme Court has stayed Bombay High Court judgment directing MP Navneet Kaur Rana to surrender caste certificate within 6 weeks.

A Division Bench of Justice Vineet Saran and Justice Dinesh Maheshwari, while directing all the respondents to file counter affidavits, posted the matter for hearing on July 27.

Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi made submissions for the Appellant, and

Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal appeared for the Vigilance Cell, opposing the Appeal.

“Handwriting and ink were different of the last two entries which could not be disputed by the respondent counsel before the High Court. There is over writing in the entry raising serious doubts”, said Sibal

Bombay High Court in its judgment dated June 8, 2021, cancelled the caste certificate of Lok Sabha Member from Amravati, Ms. Navneet Kaur Rana, holding that she obtained the same fraudulently by producing fabricated documents.

It was the submission of Mr. Rohatgi that the High Court was completely wrong in overturning the report of the scrutiny committee.

“Document of tenancy cannot be discarded. I filed my WP because 2-3 documents were adverse to me, which was not considered altogether. I have documents from 1895. Refers to page 101 of the impugned judgment where Bombay High Court has said that my WP has not been perused only”, submitted Senior Counsel Mr. Rohatgi.

Court added that Caste Scrutiny Committee, which is expected to show high degree of circumspection, seemed to be swayed by extenuating circumstances, keeping aside the application of judicious mind.

Directions were issued to the Respondent candidate to surrender the caste certificate within 6 weeks from the said order.

A Division Bench of Justice VG Bisht and Justice RD Dhanuka, while imposing a cost of Rs 200000 upon the respondent MP, payable to the Maharashtra Legal Services Authority, observed,

“In our view the caste claim made by the respondent no.3 for obtaining a caste certificate as schedule caste itself was fraudulent and was made with intention to obtain various benefits available to a candidate from such schedule caste category knowingly well that she does not belong to that caste. The application thus itself was made intentionally to make a fraudulent claim to enable the respondent no.3 to contest an election for Member of Parliament on the seat reserved for a scheduled caste candidate.”

Case Title: Navneet Kaur Rana v. State of Maharashtra | SLP (C) No. 7776-7778 of 2021