An SC/ST in one state can't claim benefits admissible to such community in another state: SC

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, January 5

A person belonging to a Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe in one state can’t claim the benefits admissible to persons belonging to such a community in another state, the Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday.

The top court endorsed the view that social condition of a community varied from state to state and it will not be proper to generalise any caste or any tribe as a Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe for the whole country.

A Bench led by Justices MR Shah said the appellant in the case before it being a Schedule Caste person from Punjab and a permanent resident of Punjab, he could not claim the benefits admissible to an SC person in Rajasthan for purchase of land belonging to an SC person.

The Bench relied upon a 1994 Constitution Bench judgment in the Action Committee on Issue of Caste Certificate to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in the State of Maharashtra and Another Vs. Union of India to decide the dispute was with respect to a piece of land in Sri Ganganagar district of Rajasthan.

“Appellant – original defendant being a Scheduled Caste belonging to State of Punjab and being an ordinarily and permanent resident of the State of Punjab cannot claim the benefit of a Scheduled Caste in the State of Rajasthan for the purpose of purchase of the land belonging to a Scheduled Caste person of State of Rajasthan, which was given to original allottee as Scheduled Caste landless person, and therefore, as rightly held by the Division Bench of the High Court, the sale transaction in favour of the appellant – original defendant was in clear breach and/or in violation of Section 42 of the Rajasthan Tenancy Act, 1955,” the top court held.

The piece of land under dispute was allotted to the father of the respondent in 1972 as Scheduled Caste landless person. A lender belonging to Jat caste duped him by making him sign a sale deed in favour of Bhadar Ram (appellant) an SC from Punjab.

The Rajasthan High Court held that Bhadar Ram being a SC person from Punjab could not have taken the benefits admissible to an SC person in Rajasthan.

On an appeal filed by Bhadar Ram, the top court ruled that the land transaction was in breach of Section 42 of the Rajasthan Tenancy Act, 1955.