Himachal HC talks tough on procuring eligibility certificates

Source:-http://www.daijiworld.com

Shimla, Oct 14 (IANS): Expressing concern over the inflexible or rigid interpretation of conditions for procuring eligibility certificates for different categories from government offices, the Himachal Pradesh High Court has framed guidelines to abridge the lacunae in the rules and to simplify the process.

While disposing a petition, the court observed that people suffer unnecessarily, many times due to wrong or delayed interpretation of the existing provisions.

“While some people are vigilant enough to knock the doors of the court for relief, innocent and poor people who suffer most as they cannot afford to come to the court either due to poverty, illness, ignorance of law, illiteracy or other reasons,” the court observed on Tuesday.

A division bench of Justices Sureshwar Thakur and C.B. Barowalia directed the state to issue appropriate directions to all the authorities concerned for issuance of certificates for different categories in light of the judgment.

The court passed these directions while disposing of a writ petition by Ashwani Kumar, who said his applications for issuing bonafide Himachali certificates in favour of his sons were rejected, despite the fact that he was residing in the state since his birth.

The government had contended that the applications were rejected as they were received without attaching Aadhaar card and copy of certificate of the concerned pradhan of the gram panchayat or local authority was not attached with the applications.

The court observed that though bonafide Himachali certificates were issued in favour of the petitioner during pendency of the petition, however, being a matter of larger public interest, the court cannot shut its eyes to the apathy of law, which leads the common man to run from pillar to post for issuance of certificates.

The judges observed that being a welfare state, the government is accountable for the individual and social welfare of its citizens.

The court observed that for obtaining bonafide certificate, the condition of a person continuously residing in the state for the last 20 years or above is already existing but is being rigidly interpreted by the authorities.

“It is depriving people from being issued bonafide certificate required for sundry usage as there may be many persons who do not have any revenue record in their names but are born in the state or residing in the state for the last 20 years or more,” the bench said.