TMI Blog2004 (1) TMI 717X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ld be deemed not to have been appointed to the service validly ever. The second appeal has been filed by his son Vimal Ghosh V. whose admission to the Regional Engineering College. Calicut has been cancelled on the basis that he obtained admission to the College against the seat reserved for a Scheduled Caste on the basis of false caste certificate. After the passing of the order by the High Court an order removing the appellant from service was passed on 11.10.2000 by the appointing authority. 3. We shall take up the Civil Appeal No. of 2004 (arising from the SLP(SIC) No. 18503 of 2000) first and shall deal with the other appeal separately. 4. In the school record the caste of R. Vishwanatha Pillai (hereinafter referred to as the appellant ) was recorded as Veduvar Pillai . His father was one Radhakrishna Pillai. He was a Nair ' by caste. His mother's caste was Veduvar Pillai . Nair as well as Veduvar Pillai are forward castes. The caste of his brother and other two sisters in the school record was also recorded as belonging to forward caste. Appellant obtained a community certificate on 14.10.1969 from the Tahsildar. Ambalappuzha stating that he ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Committee in the High Court of Kerala in O.P. No. 963 of 1996. The petition was dismissed by the Division Bench on 26.2.1997 by a reasoned order. The order of the Scrutiny Committee was upheld. The special leave petition bearing No. 11199 of 1997 filed against the order of the High Court was dismissed on 1.5.1998. The review petition in the order of the SLP was also dismissed on 12.8.1998. 6. Thereafter, the appellant filed O.A No. 340 of 1997 before the Central Administrative Tribunal (Ernakulam Bench) seeking direction against the respondents not to terminate the service of the appellant based on the proceedings of the Scrutiny Committee, and also not to terminate the service without satisfying the conditions laid down in Article 311 of the Constitution of India along with the provisions of All India Service (Discipline and Appeals) Rules, 1969 (hereinafter referred to as the Rules ). The Central Administrative Tribunal allowed the O.A. on 24.4.1997 and directed that the service of the appellant be not terminated without following the procedure laid down in Article 311 and also under the Rules. The said decision of the Central Administrative Tribunal was challenged befo ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... considered. According to him the protection under Article 311 of the Constitution of India and the Rules made thereunder cannot be taken away by a judicial pronouncement and the appellant would be entitled to the constitutional protection provided to him under Article 311 of the Constitution and the Government was required to comply with the All India Service (Discipline and Appeals) Rules, 1969 before terminating his services. 11. In Kumari Madhuri Patil's case (supra) the admissions were taken by two sisters to the professional courses on the basis of false caste certificate produced by them, which were cancelled after the report submitted by the Verification Committee to the effect that the certificates produced by the appellants therein were false and that the appellants did not belong to the Scheduled Castes Scheduled Tribes. The Court observed that all citizens were to be treated equally. That the Constitution guaranteed to the citizens equality before law and the equal protection of law. Though Articles 14 and 15(1) prohibit discrimination among citizens but Article 15(4) empowers the State to make special provisions for advancement of Scheduled Castes and Sched ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... thereby usurping the seat post reserved for the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes were required to be weeded out by prompt action. It was held: 13. The Admission wrongly gained or appointment wrongly obtained on the basis of false social status certificate necessarily has the effect of depriving the genuine Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes or OBC candidates as enjoined in the Constitution of the benefits conferred on them by the Constitution. The genuine candidates ate also denied admission to educational institutions or appointments to office or posts under a Stale for want of social status certificate. The ineligible or spurious persons who falsely gained entry resort to dilatory tactics and create hurdles in completion of the inquiries by the Scrutiny Committee. It is true that the applications for admission to educational institutions are generally made by a parent since on that date many time the student may be a minor. It is the parent on the guardian who may play fraud claiming false status certificate. It is, therefore, necessary that the certificates issued are scrutinised at the earliest and with utmost expedition and promptitude. 12. Article 311 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... conducted by the Scrutiny Committee consisting of three officers, namely, (1) an Additional or Joint Secretary or any officer higher in rank of the Director of the department concerned, (II) The Director, Social Welfare Tribal Welfare/Backward Class Welfare, as the case may be, and (III) in the case of Scheduled Castes another officer having intimate knowledge in the verification and issuance of the social status certifies, who were better equipped to examine the question regarding the validity or otherwise of the caste certificate. Due opportunity was given to the appellant to put-forth his point of view and defend himself. The issuance of a fresh notice under the Rules for proving the same misconduct which has already been examined by an independent body constituted under the direction of this Court, the decision of which has already been upheld upto this Court would be repetitive as well as futile. The second safeguard in Article 311 that the order of dismissal removal and reduction in rank should not be passed by an authority subordinate to that by which he was appointed has also been met with. The impugned order terminating the services of the appellant has been passed by his ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the appointment by playing a fraud he cannot be allowed to take advantage of his own fraud in entering the service and claim that he was holder of the post entitled to be dealt with in terms of Article 311 of the Constitution of India or the Rules framed thereunder. Where an appointment in a service has been acquired by practising fraud or deceit such an appointment is no appointment in law, in service and in such a situation Article 311 of the Constitution is not attracted at all. 16. In Ishwar Dayal Sah v. State of Bihar, 1987 Lab.I.C. 390, the Division Bench of the Patna High Court examined the point as to whether a person who obtained the appointment on the basis of a false caste certificate was entitled to the protection of Article 311 of the Constitution. In the Mid case the employee had obtained appointment by producing a caste certificate that he belonged to a Scheduled Caste community which later on was found to be false. His appointment was cancelled. It was contended by the employee that the cancellation of his appointment amounted to removal from service within the meaning of Article 311 of the Constitution and therefore void. It was contended that he could not ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... submission, as well. The rights to salary, pension and other service benefits are entirely statutory in nature in public service. Appellant obtained the appointment against a post meant for a reserved candidate by producing a false caste certificate and by playing a fraud. His appointment to the post was void and non est in the eyes of law. The right to salary or pension after retirement flow from a valid and legal appointment. The consequential right of pension and monetary benefits can be given only if the appointment was valid and legal. Such benefits cannot be given in a case where the appointment was found to have been obtained fraudulently and rested on false caste certificate. A person who entered the service by producing a false caste certificate and obtained appointment for the post meant for Scheduled Caste thus depriving the genuine Scheduled Caste of appointment to that post does not deserve any sympathy or indulgence of this Court. A person who, seeks equity must come with clean hands. He. who comes to the Court with false claims, cannot plead equity nor the Court would be justified to exercise equity jurisdiction in his favour. A person who seeks equity must act in a ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ssued to the appellant was cancelled. On me basis of the KIRTADS report and the findings of the Scrutiny Committee communicated to the Regional Engineering College, Calicut the admission of the appellant was cancelled and his name was removed from the rolls of the College. 23. This order was challenged by the appellant in the High Court by filing a writ petition being O.P. No. 18774 of 1995. In the writ petition the appellant filed an application praying for the issuance of a direction to the College to permit the appellant to appear for the 6th semester examination which was to commence on 6.12.1995. On 15.12.1995 the High Court allowed the appellant to appear in the 6th semester examination subject to the condition that result be not published without obtaining further orders from the Court. Later on, on a similar application filed by the appellant he was allowed to continue the studies in the College and sit for the 7th and 8th semester examinations. Pursuant to the permission granted by the High Court the appellant appeared for 6th, 7th and 8th semester examinations but the result was not declared. Appellant completed his engineering course in the year 1996. 2 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... cellation of the social status fraudulently obtained by the candidate allowed her to appear in the final year examination of the MDBS course with the rider that she would not be entitled to take any benefit in future on the basis of the social caste certificate obtained by her. It was observed: 18. The Delay in the process is inevitable but that factor should neither be considered to be relevant nor be an aid to complete the course of study. But for the fact that she has completed the entire course except to appear for the final examination, we would have directed to debar her from prosecuting the studies and appearing in the examination. In this factual situation no useful purpose would be served to debar her from appearing for the examination of final year MBBS. Therefore, we uphold the cancellation of the social status as Mahadeo Koli fraudulently obtained by Km Suchita Laxman Patil, but she be allowed to appear for the final year examination of MBBS course. She will not however be entitled in future for any benefits on the basis of the fraudulent social status as Mahadeo Koli. However, this direction should not be treated and used as a precedent in future cases to giv ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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