Pre-Independence Records Hold Greater Probative Value | Supreme Court Says Affinity Test Alone Cannot Defeat Claim, Quashes Orders And Directs Koli Mahadev Tribe Validity Certificate
- Post By 24law
- August 13, 2025

Kiran Raj
The Supreme Court of India, Bench of Chief Justice B.R. Gavai, Justice Satish Chandra Sharma, and Justice K. Vinod Chandran, has set aside the judgment of a Division Bench of the High Court that had upheld the invalidation of a caste claim by the Scheduled Tribe Certificate Scrutiny Committee. The Court held that the appellant belongs to the Koli Mahadev Tribe and directed the Scrutiny Committee to issue a Caste Validity Certificate within six weeks from the date of judgment. The Court quashed both the High Court judgment and the Scrutiny Committee's order, citing the higher probative value of pre-Independence documents and stating that the affinity test cannot be the sole ground to deny a caste claim.
The matter arose from an appeal challenging the judgment and final order of the High Court of Judicature at Bombay, Bench at Aurangabad, delivered on 23 July 2024 in Writ Petition No. 8702 of 2019. The High Court had dismissed the writ petition challenging the 24 June 2019 order of the Scheduled Tribe Certificate Scrutiny Committee, Aurangabad Division, which confiscated and invalidated the caste certificates of the appellant and his father for the Scheduled Tribe—Koli Mahadev.
In 1943, the appellant’s grandfather, Jalba Malba Makalwad, was admitted to Zilla Parishad Primary School, Narangal, Degloor Taluka, Nanded District, where his caste was recorded as Koli Mahadev. In 1975 and 1979, the appellant’s uncle and father were admitted to Zilla Parishad Primary School, Kabirwadi, Degloor Taluka, and their caste entries also recorded Koli Mahadev. In 2005, the appellant's own school admission record at Janta Vidya Mandir Primary School, Murud Taluka, Latur District, reflected the same caste.
On 21 May 2010, the Government of Maharashtra issued a circular implementing schemes in villages with Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe populations exceeding 40%, under which the appellant’s village qualified. On 18 June 2010, the appellant’s school leaving register again showed the caste as Koli Mahadev.
In 2019, the appellant appeared for NEET-UG, scored 334/720, and sought admission to a medical college under the Scheduled Tribe quota. His caste certificate was pending validation, leading to W.P. No. 8702 of 2019 before the High Court. During its pendency, the Scrutiny Committee rejected his claim, disbelieving school records of his grandfather, father, and uncle, and confiscated the certificates.
The appellant amended the writ petition to challenge this order. The High Court dismissed the petition, holding the records unreliable and insufficient to substantiate the caste claim. The appellant approached the Supreme Court via Special Leave Petition.
Counsel for the appellant argued that the 1943 school record, being a pre-Independence document, had greater probative value and should have been relied upon. The State’s counsel argued that the document was doubtful, with inconclusive handwriting expert opinion, and that the appellant failed the affinity test by being unable to detail customs and traditions of the Koli Mahadev Tribe.
The Supreme Court referred to Anand v. Committee for Scrutiny & Verification of Tribe Claims (2012) 1 SCC 113, stating: "Greater reliance may be placed on pre-Independence documents because they furnish a higher degree of probative value to the declaration of status of a caste, as compared to post-Independence documents." It noted that if a document’s credibility is in doubt, "its veracity has to be tested on the basis of oral evidence, for which an opportunity has to be afforded to the applicant."
The Court also recorded from Anand that the affinity test, while useful, is not determinative: "The affinity test may not be regarded as a litmus test for establishing the link of the applicant with a Scheduled Tribe... it may be used to corroborate the documentary evidence and should not be the sole criteria to reject a claim."
On examining the 1943 school record with a magnifying glass, the Court observed: "The words Koli Mahadev written in the entry are in the same ink and in the same handwriting... there could be no scope for interpolation." The Court held that this pre-Independence record, along with subsequent consistent school entries of the appellant’s father and uncle, warranted acceptance of the caste claim.
It rejected the High Court’s reasoning that no validated document existed, noting that the appellant and his father were first-time applicants for validation.
The Court reiterated from Maharashtra Adiwasi Thakur Jamat Swarakshan Samiti v. State of Maharashtra (2023) 16 SCC 415, that the affinity test is not conclusive and must be considered alongside other probative material.
The Supreme Court allowed the appeal, quashed the High Court judgment of 23 July 2024, and set aside the Scrutiny Committee’s order of 24 June 2019. It declared that the appellant belongs to the Koli Mahadev Tribe and directed: "The Scrutiny Committee is directed to issue Caste Validity Certificate to the appellant within a period of six weeks from the date of this judgment."
The Court also ordered that all pending applications, if any, stand disposed of.
Advocates Representing the Parties:
For Petitioner(s): Mr. Uday Bhaskar Dubey, Sr. Adv. Mr. Kailas More, AOR Ms. Nirmala D. Borade, Adv. Ms. Nikita Singh, Adv. Ms. Meena Sehrawat, Adv. Mr. Akash Yadav, Adv. Mr. Kaustubh Dube, Adv.
For Respondent(s): Mr. Varad Kilor, Adv. Mr. Siddharth Dharmadhikari, Adv. Mr. Aaditya Aniruddha Pande, AOR Mr. Shrirang B. Varma, Adv.
Case Title: Yogesh Madhav Makalwad v. The State of Maharashtra & Ors.
Neutral Citation: 2025 INSC 964
Case Number: Civil Appeal of 2025 arising out of SLP(C) No. 27410 of 2024
Bench: Chief Justice B.R. Gavai, Justice Satish Chandra Sharma, Justice K. Vinod Chandran