HIGH COURT OF UTTARAKHAND AT NAINITAL Writ Petition (M/S) No. 766 of 2025 Avnika Singh …....Petitioner Versus State of Uttarakhand and another .….Respondents Present:- Mr. Anil Kumar Joshi, Advocate for the petitioner. Mr. M.S. Bisht, Brief Holder for the State. Hon’ble Ravindra Maithani, J. (Oral) This challenge in this petition is made to the impugned order by which the petitioner has been denied caste certificate. 2. Heard learned counsel for the parties and perused the record. 3. It is the case of the petitioner that she was born on 23.08.2003 at Tehsil and District Haridwar. She is a permanent resident of District Haridwar; she was issued a permanent resident certificate on 24.08.2021 by the Sub Divisional Magistrate, Haridwar (“the SDM”). The petitioner belongs to the Jat community which is a caste notified as other backward classes in the State of Uttarakhand. Therefore, the petitioner applied for the caste certificate on 07.12.2024, but it has been rejected on the ground that the petitioner has not enclosed evidence for the year 1985. It is under challenge. 4. The respondent no.2/ Tehsildar, Haridwar has filed counter affidavit. According to it, other backward class certificate is only issued, if the applicant is a permanent resident of any part of the State of Uttarakhand on or before 09.09.2000. According to the counter affidavit, para 15, the petitioner did not produce any proof of her and 2 her family being permanent resident of the State of Uttarakhand. In fact, it is the case of the respondent no.2/Tehsildar, Haridwar that as per Clause 3 of the Government Order dated 02.04.2013, the caste certificate may only be issued to a person, if they are permanent resident of any part of the State of Uttarakhand. 5. Learned counsel for the petitioner would submit that the petitioner is a permanent resident of the State of Uttarakhand. She has already been issued permanent resident certificate by the SDM, Haridwar on 24.08.2021, as Annexure 3 to the writ petition which has been issued as per Government Order 2588/Ek-4/Sa.Pra./2001 dated 20.11.2001. Therefore, it is argued that the petitioner cannot be denied caste certificate on the ground that she is not a permanent resident of the State of Uttarakhand. 6. Learned State counsel submits that the petitioner did not produce a proof of her permanent resident in the State of Uttarakhand as per Government Order dated 02.04.2013. 7. For issuance of caste certificate, the Government Order No. 1118/XVII-1/2013-01 (20)/2013 dated 02.04.2013 has been issued. Paras 3 and 4 of it, makes it abundantly clear that a caste certificate may only be issued if a person is permanent resident of the State of Uttarakhand as per Government Order 2588/Ek-4/Sa.Pra./2001 dated 20.11.2001. 8. In the instant case, the petitioner has been provided a permanent resident certificate in accordance with Government Order 2588/Ek-4/Sa.Pra./2001 dated 20.11.2001. Therefore, if the petitioner has permanent resident certificate, she is not required to submit any 3 other proof of her permanent resident except production of permanent resident certificate, which she has. 9. Accordingly, this Court is of the view that the application of the petitioner has wrongly been dismissed on the ground that she has not submitted the proof of year 1985. Accordingly, the writ petition deserves to be allowed. 10. The writ petition is allowed. 11. The respondent no.2/Tehsildar, Haridwar is directed to consider the issuance of caste certificate to the petitioner on the basis of the permanent resident certificate 24.08.2021. (Ravindra Maithani, J) 21.07.2025 Jitendra