Puducherry Children Can Claim Reservation Through Mother’s Caste, Says Madras HC
The petitions challenged the denial of caste and domicile certificates, which had resulted in the women and their children facing difficulties in accessing reservation benefits
The Madras High Court has held that children born in Puducherry can claim SC, MBC and OBC reservation benefits based on the caste status of their mothers, who are originally from the Union Territory, rejecting the argument that caste and social status must be determined through the father.
The court was hearing petitions filed by 26 women originally from Puducherry and their children, who were allegedly denied caste certificates by the district administration after the women married men from other states. Instead, the children were issued migrant certificates based on their fathers’ place of residence.
The petitions challenged the denial of caste and domicile certificates, which had resulted in the women and their children facing difficulties in accessing reservation benefits.
What the Puducherry government argued
During the hearing before Justice Bharatha Chakravarthy on August 27, the Puducherry government argued that “Indian society has traditionally followed a patriarchal system. Therefore, caste and social status should be determined through the father.”
The government also relied on a Supreme Court judgment which held that a person eligible for reservation in one state cannot claim the same benefit after migrating to another state. It also cited directions issued by the Central government while refusing to issue domicile certificates.
Advocate Stalin Abhimanyu, appearing for the petitioners, argued that restricting the issuance of caste certificates to the father’s caste was contrary to the constitutional guarantee of gender equality.
“Stating that caste certificates can be issued only through the father is contrary to the gender equality guaranteed under Articles 14, 15 and 16 of the Constitution,” he argued.
“When the children are born in Puducherry and face challenges within the social environment in which their mother lives, the mother’s rights cannot be denied by citing the father’s migration,” he added.
After hearing arguments from both sides, Justice Bharatha Chakravarthy rejected the reliance on the patriarchal social system to deny equal rights to women.
“The denial of equal rights to women by citing the conservative patriarchal social system can never be accepted,” the judge said.
The court directed the Revenue Department to immediately issue SC, MBC and OBC certificates to the children based on the caste status of their mothers who are originally from Puducherry.
The High Court has also stated that “those children are eligible to receive the full benefits of reservation in admissions to Puducherry government educational institutions and government jobs.”
However, as the Puducherry government has filed an appeal against the High Court’s judgment before a two-judge bench, the High Court’s order cannot currently be implemented.
