Justice Anoop Kumar Dhand, Rajasthan High Court
"Teli" Caste In OBC List Applies To All Religions, Hindu Or Non-Hindu: Rajasthan High Court
|The state denied him benefits on the grounds that Muslim-Telis were not considered part of the OBC category.
The Rajasthan High Court ruled that the caste "Teli," which is included in the Central List of Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in Rajasthan, is applicable to people regardless of their religion, including both Hindus and Non-Hindus.
This ruling came in response to a petition where a Muslim individual, employed under the NREGA scheme as an OBC, faced the discontinuation of his employment. The state had denied him benefits on the grounds that Muslim-Telis were not considered part of the OBC category.
The petitioner had been issued an OBC certificate by the competent authority, but the state's action was based on a recent caste list from the Ministry of Minority Affairs, which did not include Muslim-Telis.
A Bench of Justice Anoop Kumar Dhand observed, “The official Gazette has been issued by the State of Rajasthan on 06.08.1994 and thereafter, a circular was also issued by the Department of Justice and Social Welfare, Government of Rajasthan on 08.11.1994, which clearly indicates that the Caste "Teli" falls within the category of OBC, irrespective of the fact that the person is Hindu or Non-Hindu, the circular is clear and specific, in this regard”
The Court considered several government notifications to address the issue. It referred to the Rajasthan Government's Gazette Notification from August 6, 1994, which clearly listed the "Teli" caste under the OBC category, regardless of religious affiliation.
Despite the state's argument, the Court found that the Department of Justice and Social Welfare had issued a crucial notification on August 28, 2009, which included the Teli caste in the OBC category. This notification specified that all members of castes traditionally defined by their hereditary occupations, such as the oil-pressing occupation of the Teli community, were included under OBC status, regardless of whether they followed Hinduism, Islam, or another religion.
“It is worthy to note here that Teli is a caste traditionally occupied in the pressing of oil in India, Nepal and Pakistan, and members of this caste may be either Hindu or Muslim, and Muslim-Teli are also called as Roshandaar or Teli Malik,” it added.
Given these points, the Court ruled that the state's action to deny the petitioner OBC benefits was unjustified and in violation of the established government notifications. The Court added, “This Court finds no justification in the stand taken by the respondents that the petitioner being a Teli and belongs to Muslim Community does not fall within the ambit of the OBC Category and the respondents were required to consider the above notification before passing the impugned order, hence, under these circumstances, the impugned order is liable to be quashed and accordingly, the same is set-aside. The petition stands allowed.”
As a result, the Court allowed the petition and directed the state to grant employment to the petitioner under the OBC category, as per his Teli caste.
Additionally, the Court issued a general mandamus to all state departments, it added, “Before parting with the order, a general mandamus is issued to all the Departments of Government of Rajasthan, not to deny the benefit of reservation of OBC Category to all those Muslim Candidates who belong to the caste, falling in the Gazette Notification, issued by the State, providing benefits under OBC Category.”
Cause Title: Sattar Khan v. Zila Parishad Dausha & Anr., [2025:RJ-JP:5134]
Appearance:
Petitioner: Advocate D. P. Sharma
Respondents: Advocates Surendra Singh Naruka, AAG with Kesar Singh Shekhawat