HC refuses to stay proceedings against Ajit Jogi in alleged fake caste certificate case

The Chhattisgarh High Court on Tuesday refused to give interim relief to former chief minister Ajit Jogi in a case registered against him for allegedly obtaining caste certificate fraudulently.

The bench of Justice RCS Samant rejected the interim application filed by Jogi seeking stay on proceedings in the FIR lodged against him at Civil Lines police station here, state Advocate General Satishchandra Verma said.

On August 23 this year, a government-appointed high level committee had dismissed Janata Congress Chhattisgarh (J) chief Jogi's claim of belonging to a Scheduled Tribe (ST) and cancelled his caste certificate, he said.

On August 29, the Bilaspur Tehsildar had lodged an FIR against Jogiunder section 10 (1) of Chhattisgarh Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Backward Classes (Regulation of Certification of Social Status) Act 2013, Verma said.

Later, Jogi had filed an application seeking stay on the FIR proceedings, he said.

Jogi in his application contended that the date of commission of the alleged offence in the case is mentioned as June 6, 1967 (the date caste certificate was issued to Jogi) when Chhattisgarh Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Backward Classes (Regulation of Certification of Social Status) Act, 2013 was not in existence and, therefore, not applicable for registering the offence against him, Verma said.

Verma had, during an earlier hearing, told the court that the offence, though initiated in 1967, was a continued one as a number of other certificates were obtained by Jogi on the basis of fake caste certificate issued on 1967.

Thereafter, the petitioner had also taken benefit of the false certificate to fight elections in constituencies reserved for Scheduled Tribes (ST) even after 2013, Verma said.