Mumbai, Sep 2 The Bombay High Court on Wednesday rejected Shiv Sena (UBT) corporator and former Mumbai Mayor Vishakha Raut's petition challenging the municipal commissioner's orders unseating her for submitting an invalid caste certificate and asking the government to notify her disqualification.
The District Caste Scrutiny Committee last month invalidated Raut's OBC certificate on the ground that the officer who had issued it did not have the jurisdiction to do so.
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) Commissioner subsequently issued orders unseating her, and intimated the state government to notify six-year electoral disqualification for her in the official gazette.
Raut's petition claimed that there is a mandatory 90-day embargo on disqualification pending hearing on her appeal.
A bench of Justices Girish Kulkarni and Neela Gokhale, however, said that the argument appeared attractive, but on deeper scrutiny it was found to be untenable. It also rejected the contention that the BMC commissioner did not have the power to issue such orders.
"Once a caste certificate is declared as false, then the legal consequence of the person being disqualified follows. Hence, we find no illegality in the orders....The petition lacks merit and is rejected," the court said.
Raut had also claimed that since her caste certificate had not been invalidated on the ground of fraud, she could not be disqualified. The High Court refused to accept this argument too.
In the BMC elections held in January, Raut won from the high-profile ward 191, which encompasses Shivaji Park and Dadar West area, by defeating Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena's Priya Sarvankar Gurav. The seat was reserved for OBC Women.
Raut had produced a certificate issued in 2005 which declared her to be belonging to the OBC Kunbi community. But in August 2026, the caste certificate scrutiny committee invalidated it as "false".
The Sena (UBT) leader's appeal against the caste scrutiny committee's order is pending before the Divisional Commissioner, Konkan.
While denying her relief, the High Court said Raut can seek an expeditious hearing before the Divisional Commissioner.
