New Delhi, July 9 -- Two weeks ago, the Supreme Court agreed to examine whether children of single mothers belonging to Other Backward Classes (OBCs) are entitled to community certificates that would enable them to access reservation benefits. The matter, which has important ramifications for gender justice and equitable access to affirmative action, has the support of the Union government, albeit with caveats. The Centre, in its June 9 response to a petition filed before the apex court, said it was not opposed to extending OBC certificates to children of single mothers. However, it highlighted that community certification remains a state subject under India's constitutional scheme. As such, the Centre pointed to the absence of uniformity in issuance of such certificates across different states, making it necessary for the Supreme Court to lay down broad guidelines if such entitlement is to be made nationally applicable. The petition, filed in public interest by Santosh Kumari, a retired schoolteacher from Delhi, challenged the prevailing norm in the Capital where OBC certificates are issued only based on paternal lineage. This criterion, the petition argued, disproportionately disadvantages children raised solely by OBC mothers, particularly those who are separated, divorced, or abandoned. The Centre underscored that, unlike Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs), for whom the Supreme Court in 2012 ruled that caste is not exclusively inherited from the father, no equivalent judicial precedent exists for children of OBC single mothers. Moreover, while the SC/ST categories are not subject to economic criteria, OBC reservations are governed by the concept of the "creamy layer" -- a mechanism that excludes economically advanced individuals from reservation benefits. Still, the Centre's willingness to consider a shift represents a policy turn. It told the court, that in its view, "Any child born to an OBC parent, whether the parents are separated or divorced, should be entitled to an OBC caste certificate based on the credentials of either the OBC father or the OBC mother, depending on which parent has custody or is actively raising the child." At the same time, the Centre noted that the authority to issue such certificates ultimately lies with state governments, and it could only facilitate and coordinate such a process. The Centre urged the court to involve states in the deliberation and asked for a framework that respects federalism. The constitutional authority for community certification flows from Entry 41 of List II in the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution, which grants states exclusive powers in matters related to public services and recruitment, including identifying and certifying individuals from reserved categories such as SCs, STs, and SEBCs (Socially and Educationally Backward Classes, which includes OBCs). In practice, the issuance of OBC certificates is handled by sub-divisional magistrates (SDMs) or equivalent district-level officers across the states. The criteria followed by states vary widely. In Delhi, for instance, the guidelines stipulate that a person seeking an OBC certificate must furnish proof of the father's or paternal blood relative's OBC status, effectively precluding children raised by single OBC mothers from availing the benefit. Kumari's petition challenged this rule on grounds of gender discrimination and social injustice. And it raises a broader constitutional question as to whether access to social justice be determined by patriarchal notions of lineage, or by the lived reality of social disadvantage and deprivation. The current debate follows a precedent set by the Supreme Court in Rameshbhai Dabhai Naika Vs State of Gujarat (2012), where the court ruled that a child's caste is not irrevocably tied to the father's identity. In that case, the petitioner's claim to ST status, based on his mother's tribal background, was upheld by the court, which clarified that children raised within the environment and culture of a ST could be considered members of that tribe, irrespective of paternal caste. This principle was later formalised in a 2019 notification issued by the Union ministry of social justice and empowerment, allowing children of SC/ST single mothers to obtain caste certificates, provided they were brought up within the social milieu of their mother's community and shared in its deprivations and challenges. The notification explicitly stressed a case-by-case approach to ensure authenticity of claims. The Delhi high court also weighed in with a similar view in Rumy Chowdhury Vs Government of NCT of Delhi (2019), ruling that when children have grown up in the community of their mother and suffered associated disadvantages, the caste of the mother may legitimately determine their eligibility for caste certificates. However, applying this reasoning to OBCs presents distinct legal and practical challenges. Unlike SCs and STs, OBC classification is not solely rooted in social stigma or historical discrimination but also includes parameters of social and educational backwardness. Moreover, the application of the creamy layer principle, which is absent in SC/ST categories, adds another layer of complexity. The Centre's affidavit warned the court that "any blanket extension of benefits in the OBC category" could lead to misuse and undermine the carefully curated policy architecture governing OBC reservations. It stressed that a judicial pronouncement without comprehensive data or empirical evidence may be ill-equipped to address the nuances involved. HT found that some states have already recognised the rights of single mothers to pass on their OBC status to their children. Among them are Goa, Tamil Nadu and Rajasthan. In Tamil Nadu, a government order issued on February 9, 2021, stated that children born to parents of different castes may be assigned either parent's caste based on a declaration made by the parent(s). Revenue officials have been instructed to issue caste certificates in line with this declaration for all recognised categories, including OBCs. The order also makes it clear that creamy layer restrictions would still apply. The Rajasthan government issued a circular as far back as in 2001, noting that the premarital caste of a woman remains unchanged after marriage. The implication: An OBC woman retains her status and can pass it to her children, provided she meets the income threshold for creamy layer exclusion. Annual income verification is required to maintain eligibility. Perhaps most explicitly, the Goa government issued a gazette notification in December 2022 authorising SDMs and deputy collectors to issue caste certificates to children of single mothers - if the mother is a widow, divorcee, abandoned, separated, harassed by in-laws, or otherwise solely raising her child in an unprivileged environment. The order applies to SC, ST, and OBC categories. These state-level innovations reflect an evolving recognition of maternal rights and social realities, and could offer templates for other states as the court deliberates on a national policy....