Madras High Court Says Complexion, Height And Physical Features Cannot Decide Whether Person Belongs To SC Community

Chennai: Can a person’s complexion, height, physique, language and hair be used to determine whether he genuinely belongs to a Scheduled Caste or not?

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Judge Flags Vigilance Committee’s Observations

The Madras High Court has said such factors “may not have any relevance”, setting aside a decision to reject the community certificate of a man who claimed to have returned to Hinduism after being born into a Christian family.

Justice D Bharatha Chakravarthy, in an order dated September 11, found the Tiruvannamalai District Level Vigilance Committee had relied, among other things, on the fact that the petitioner and his family members were “very fair in colour”, that the men were tall, had a good physique, spoke Tamil and English and had curly hair while examining the genuineness of his claim.

The court also noted that these observations were not made in the context of any evaluation by an anthropologist.

Case Involves Hindu Adi Dravidar Community Certificate

The case concerns M Ravikumar, whose community certificate identifies him as a Hindu Adi Dravidar. His father originally belonged to the Hindu Adi Dravidar community but converted to Christianity in 1960. Ravikumar was born in a Christian family in 1966.

In 1983, Ravikumar and his father decided to return to Hinduism. According to Ravikumar, re-conversion ceremonies were performed at an Arya Samaj centre in Chennai. His father’s name was subsequently changed from R. Ayyavoo James to R. Munusamy, while Ravikumar’s name was changed from A. Soundararajan to M. Ravikumar.

Father And Son Reconverted To Hinduism In 1983

Ravikumar obtained a community certificate on December 10, 1986. The certificate recorded that he was originally a Hindu Adi Dravidar, had converted to Christianity, re-converted to Hinduism and was then belonging to the Adi Dravidar community. On the strength of the certificate, he secured employment in the Customs department and was working as an Assistant Commissioner when the genuineness of his certificate was questioned shortly before his scheduled retirement on May 30, 2026.

During the enquiry, Ravikumar produced photographs and other material to show that he and his family followed Hinduism. He stated that he worshipped Hindu gods and that his marriage, as well as his daughter’s marriage, had been conducted according to Hindu rites and customs.

The vigilance committee nevertheless held his certificate to be not genuine.

Ravikumar Presents Evidence Of Hindu Practices

Apart from the observations on physical appearance, the committee relied on other circumstances, including the fact that Ravikumar’s father had been buried in a Christian cemetery. The High Court said that circumstance could be relevant. But it found several other findings either unsupported or inadequately reasoned.

The court particularly questioned the committee’s reference to a 1994 ration card allegedly showing Ravikumar’s daughter as Christian. Ravikumar had stated that he married only on September 15, 1994, while his first daughter was born on November 10, 1998. The court found the committee’s finding on this aspect unsustainable.

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The court referred to the Supreme Court’s decision in K.P. Manu v. Chairman, Scrutiny Committee for Verification of Community Certificate, which held that where a person born after his parents’ conversion to Christianity embraces Hinduism and is accepted by members of the caste, he comes within the fold of the caste.

The High Court did not, however, finally decide Ravikumar’s entitlement to the certificate.

It set aside the May 4 proceedings and ordered a fresh enquiry. Ravikumar has been given four weeks to appear before the committee and produce documents, photographs and other material to establish that he follows Hinduism. He can also produce evidence showing that he has been accepted by the community after his re-conversion.

The committee can call for further evidence and has been directed to pass fresh orders within eight weeks of his appearance, the court said.

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