Child can adopt caste of either parent: HC

Child can adopt caste of either parent: HC
8 Jan 2009

CHENNAI: Ruling that a child born out of an inter-caste wedding is free to choose the caste of either parent, the Madras High Court has put the smile back on the face of an AIADMK councillor, who was disqualified for having contested from a reserved constituency in Coimbatore district.

Justice A C Arumugaperumal Adityan, setting aside the disqualification of V Kasthuri, who was elected union councillor in Anaimalai panchayat union in 2006, pointed out that as per a government order dated June 27, 1975, children born to parents, one of whom belonging to a scheduled caste, can be considered to belong to the community of either parent.

The 47-year-old Kasthuri’s father was from a backward community and her mother belonged to the Kudumban community, which is a Scheduled Caste. She had been elected president of the reserved Ramanamudalipudur village panchayat in 1996, and in 2001 too she contested from the same constituency but lost. During the period she had been appointed trustee of a local temple as a Scheduled Caste representative. In 2006 she was elected as councillor in the panchayat union.

However, after her election, an objection was raised about her eligibility to contest from a reserved seat. The principal district court in Coimbatore allowed the plea and set aside her election. This revision petition challenged the sessions court order.

Justice Arumugaperumal Adityan, after hearing the submissions of additional advocate-general P Wilson and counsel K Selvaraj, allowed her petition and said the trial judge had not given convincing reasons for rejecting the community certificate obtained by Kasthuri. He then set aside the subordinate court’s finding and dismissed the original petition against Kasthuri’s election.

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