Woman gets spouse's ST caste for job: HC says no criminal intention, quashes proceedings

The High Court of Karnataka has quashed the criminal proceedings against a 68-year-old woman observing that she had no criminal intention while obtaining the Scheduled Tribe (ST) caste certificate for a government job.

The petitioner was born as a Brahmin but after marrying a person belonging to the Scheduled Tribe category, she obtained an ST caste certificate and secured a government job.

She was booked by the authorities for cheating, false declaration and also under section 3 (1) (ix) of Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989.

Job through KPSC

The prosecution case was that being born as a Brahmin the petitioner could not have obtained an ST certificate on the ground that she married a person belonging to the ST category. The petitioner had secured a job through the Karnataka Public Service Commission (KPSC) and was appointed as a second division clerk and posted at Commercial Taxes Department.

The petitioner was dismissed from service in April 2012 and a complaint came to be registered after the Caste Verification Committee annulled her caste certificate.

The woman challenged the proceedings pending before a special court in Tumakuru. She contended that at the time of her marriage, the prevailing law allowed her to take her husband’s caste until in 1996 the Apex Court took the opposite view in the Valsamma Paul case.

Justice K Natarajan noted that the Prevention of Atrocities Act came into force only in 1989 and if any offence was committed prior to the commencement of the Act, the person cannot be punished for the non-existing law. The court also said that the petitioner had no criminal intention while obtaining the certificate, seeking reservation, and getting an appointment.

“She believed that she will get the caste of her husband in view of marrying the person who belongs to a member of SC/ST. Therefore, she had no intention to cheat any person belonging to any SC/ST and denial of employment opportunities to the person of the SC/ST community. Therefore, continuing criminal proceedings against the petitioner is an abuse of process of law, which is liable to be quashed,” the court said.