Supreme Court seeks govt’s response on amending rules for issuing OBC certificate

The Supreme Court has asked the Centre and the Delhi Government to respond to a petition, seeking directions to amend rules for issuing OBC certificates to children of single mothers.

A Bench of Justice BR Gavai and Justice AG Masih issued the order on a Delhi woman’s petition that highlighted gender bias in the existing guidelines. The petitioner said an OBC certificate couldn’t be granted on the basis of an OBC certificate of a single mother and an applicant had to produce such a certificate from the paternal side. Such an action by the respondent authorities went against constitutional provisions, she contended.

“The inaction on the part of the respondents to issue OBC certificates to children of a single mother on the basis of the OBC certificate of their single mother are in contravention of the rights of the children, who belong to the Other Backward Classes,” she submitted.

The petition submitted that the guidelines violated constitutional provisions as children of a single mother belonging to the SC or ST category were granted caste certificates on the basis of her certificate.

The insistence on the father’s OBC certificate or the paternal side by the authorities for issuing OBC certificates to children of single mothers was totally against the rights of children brought up by her, she said, referring to the Delhi Government’s guidelines for issuance of OBC certificate.

Any person residing in Delhi and wanting to apply for an OBC certificate, has to produce an OBC certificate of any paternal blood relative.