New Delhi, October 22
The Supreme Court has come down heavily on election authorities for laxity in scrutiny of nominations, especially in the cases of Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe candidates to check any fraudulent claims against reserved seats, saying such acts were nothing but a fraud on the Constitution and deserved to be dealt with seriously.
“Any action by the authorities or by the people claming a right/privilege under the Constitution which subverts the Constitutional purpose must be treated as a fraud on the Constitution,” a Bench of Mr Justice S. B. Sinha and Mr Justice C. K. Thakker said.
“The Constitution does not postulate conferment of any special benefit on those who do not belong to the category of people for whom the provision (of reservation) was made,” the Court said dismissing an appeal of a woman panchayat president from Kerala, born to Chirstian parents, who got herself elected under the SC quota by fraudulently obtaining a Scheduled Caste certificate from the authorities concerned.
Taking a serious view of authorities showing laxity in dealing with cases where frivolous claims of SC/ST reservations were made, the apex court directed the courts below to be extra vigilant about such frauds.
The Bench also had a word of caution to the courts below, so that “fraudulent acts are not encouraged by them”.
The Court said the provision of reservations for the SC and ST communities was provided as a “protective” measure which should not be allowed to be misused.
Though the apex court refrained from imposing cost on Lilly Kutty, it said her appeal against the High Court order which had rightly set aside her election, was “ill founded”.
The High Court had set aside her 2000 election as president of Thannithode gram panchayat after a statutory committee, which investigated the matter, found that Lilly Kutty, a born Catholic Christian, had got herself elected as a SC candidate on the basis of a certificate obtained by committing a fraud. The committee was directed to probe the case by the High Court after her election was challenged by a defeated candidate.
In the certificate filed by her, along with the nomination papers, Lilly Kutty had claimed that she was born in 1961 to Hindu Pulayan community, recognised as SC in Kerala and her mother had remarried a Christian much later in 1975, therefore, she could not be denied the reservation benefit.
She also claimed that she had never converted to Christianity.
But her claims were found to be false by the probe committee after examining the relevant revenue records according to which she did not belong to Pulayan community but was a born Christian as her parents were Catholic Christians at the time of her birth.
