Over 1,800 married women were excluded as they submitted their father's caste-cum-income certificate instead of their spouse's.
Published Nov 22, 2023 | 9:00 AM ⚊ Updated Nov 22, 2023 | 9:00 AM
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In defiance of numerous directives from the Supreme Court and the Karnataka High Court, the Karnataka government’s controversial decision to omit the names of more than 1,800 married women from the list of Graduate Primary Teachers selected for Classes 6 to 8, has plunged them into a state of uncertainty.
Struggling for over a year, the change of government in Karnataka has not led to any change in their plight.
The married women have been excluded from the selection list on the contention that they submitted their father’s caste-cum-income certificate instead of their spouse’s.
The Department of Public Instructions had issued notification for the recruitment of 15,000 Graduate Primary School Teachers for Classes 6 to 8 on 21 March, 2022. Over 1.15 lakh aspirants had applied for the posts.
The examinations were held on 21 and 22 May, 2022, and results were declared on 17 August, 2022. A provisional list was released on 18 November, 2022, where 13,052 aspirants were found eligible for the posts.
Following the release of the provisional list, some candidates contested the rejection of their caste-cum-income certificates. Subsequently, a single judge bench of the Karnataka High Court quashed the provisional list and directed the state to revise the selection list.
However, after the government released a fresh list, some of the candidates who had been left out, approached a high court Division Bench led by Chief Justice Prasanna B Varale and Justice MGS Kamal, which partially allowed government appeals and permitted the appointment of teachers for Classes 6 to 8 in Karnataka.
The decision followed challenges to the rejection of caste-cum-income certificates in the provisional list.
At this time, the single judge’s directive to reconsider applications based on parents’ certificates and not spouses’ was overturned by the Division Bench. It emphasised that the Karnataka State Administrative Tribunal (KSAT) was the proper venue for such matters.
Appointments based on incomplete documentation were deferred pending the tribunal’s decision.
Meanwhile, Minister for Primary and Secondary Education Madhu Bangarappa asserted that the government would decide the future of these candidates only after the court ruled on the matter.
Enraged by these developments, dismayed candidates have approached the Supreme Court seeking justice.
After the release of the provisional list in November 2022, aspiring candidates faced myriad challenges, highlighting the complex issue of caste-cum-income certificates.
Despite obtaining a favourable judgement from a single judge bench in the subsequent court proceedings, the journey towards justice remained elusive.
The government’s release of the revised lists further added to the confusion, leaving candidates in a perpetual state of uncertainty.
As the struggle continues even a year later, the candidates are now compelled to seek resolution through the KSAT, amplifying the larger issues surrounding the verification and conversion of reservation categories.
Dharwad’s Suman (name changed) told South First, “My name was omitted from the provisional list released on 18 November, 2022, for submitting my father’s caste-cum-income certificate. I submitted it because I wasn’t married when the notification was issued.”
“I got married after appearing for the exams. Importantly, the government has nowhere mentioned specifically that married women must submit their spouse’s caste-cum-income certificate,” added Suman, who passed the CET exam on merit.
She continued, “We then moved to the high court, where a single judge bench gave a judgement in our favour. Following the high court order, the government released a fresh list on 27 February this year. In this list, our names have been included.”
“The government released the final list on 8 March, where my name was included. However, in a shocking development, my name was again left out in the counselling list released on 19 October. The Division Bench has asked us to resolve the matter with the KSAT.”
“This circus has been going on for the last year. The government has to provide us justice. If not, we will launch an indefinite strike,” said Suman, who belongs to the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category.
Chikkamagaluru’s Sandeep Kumar, whose wife cleared the exam but was later left out of the list, told South First, “Deputy Director of Public Instructions (DDPI) has no authority to verify the caste-cum-income certificate or convert the OBCs to General Merit (GM) without their knowledge. On what authority was the DDPI permitted to do so?”
“My wife’s reservation category has been converted from OBC to GM. We were shocked. When we asked the authorities concerned, they pointed out that she has submitted her father’s caste-cum-income certificate instead of mine,” he said.
“We condemn this act by the government. Several Supreme Court and high court orders clearly state that the candidate’s father’s caste-cum-income has to be considered instead of the spouse. I am perplexed and dismayed as to why the government is creating unnecessary confusion,” Sandeep said, adding that the government was playing with the lives of the aspirants.
The experiences of individuals like Suman and Sandeep Kumar’s wife not only spotlight their struggles, but also echo the collective challenges faced by around 1,800 married women.
These stories emphasise the imperative for clarity and fairness in the government’s handling of the inclusion of married women and the interpretation of caste-cum-income certificates, reflecting a broader issue that impacts a significant number of aspirants.
While the government said that it would take a decision on these candidates only after the court’s verdict, it also pointed out that the entire recruitment process was based on the Government Order issued on 12 December, 1986.
According to the GO, “The determination of income is based on the husband of a married woman and not of her parents.”
Minister Madhu Bangarappa told reporters, “We are in need of teachers to run the government schools. The matter is before the court. The government will take decisions based on the court’s outcome. We have already started the counselling process and issued appointment orders to the eligible candidates.”
“We are going as per the directions of the Division Bench. The matter has been referred to the advocate general. The matter is before the court. Based on the court’s outcome, the department will take further decisions on issuing appointment orders,” an official from the Education Minister’s office told South First.
It should be noted that the Government Order issued by the Department of Social Welfare on 30 March, 2002, specified that candidates should consider their father’s caste-cum-income certificate. The order does not mention anything about married women submitting their spouse’s income certificate.
Aside from these candidates, the government has already started issuing appointment orders to the eligible candidates. Those who have received appointment orders have started reporting to schools across the state.
South First tried to reach Department of School Education and Literacy Commissioner BB Cauvery. However, she did not respond.
After failing to get justice at the Karnataka High Court and KSAT, the dismayed candidates have filed a petition before the Supreme Court.
Chikkaballapur’s Vignesh Gowda, whose wife’s name was also omitted from the counselling list, told South First, “The single judge bench has clearly highlighted several Supreme Court and high court orders while delivering its judgement. In the cases of Yogeshwari vs State of Karnataka and Divyashree vs State of Karnataka, the high court has ordered the inclusion of these two women’s names, who had submitted their fathers’ caste-cum-income certificate, in the selection list. But the Division Bench quashed the single judge bench order. As we are failing to get justice here, we have filed a petition before the Supreme Court.”
“Hundreds of married women have extended support to us. The government is playing with the aspirants’ lives by considering and omitting the names of married women in its lists. There are several married women who have faced family issues because their names were omitted from the counselling list,” he added.
“The government has nowhere mentioned the Government Order issued in 1986. Importantly, there were similar hurdles in the previous teachers’ recruitment list. Several married women, who submitted their fathers’ caste-cum-income certificate, were given appointment orders between 2018 and 2019. We will not stop fighting until justice is served,” Gowda said.
Aspirant Saritha Mugli told South First, “We have already spent lakhs of rupees on the high court and KSAT battling our cases. With no option left, we are approaching the Supreme Court seeking justice. We have also written a letter to the prime minister and Governor of Karnataka on the matter.”
She added, “We met Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Education Minister Madhu Bangarappa, and other ministers on the matter. They also assured us but there has been no concrete development.”
She further said, “When we raised this issue with the previous BJP government, the then Opposition Congress came heavily down on the ruling party. Now, the grand old party is in power but they have remained silent, too, instead of ensuring us justice.”
“They used our situation for their political gains. We will continue to fight inside and outside the courtroom until justice is served,” charged Saritha.
