Sudipto Mondal/The Hindu

• ‘They are used to gain State-sponsored benefits for SC/ST 

Mangalore, Jul 18: The Directorate of Civil Rights Enforcement, Mangalore region, has registered 60 cases against people, who have been accused of using fake Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe certificates for various purposes, in the last two months.

The cases pertain to violations of norms in Dakshina Kannada, Udupi, Uttara Kannada and Chikmagalur coming under the jurisdiction of Mangalore Region. Chikmagalur tops the list with 20 cases, followed by Uttara Kannada with 18 cases, Dakshina Kannada 12 and Udupi 10.

Manjunath K. Annigeri, Superintendent of Police, told The Hindu that it was ironical that people, who had for centuries distanced themselves from the downtrodden sections and rendered them untouchables, now wanted to be part of the same sections.

Of the 60 cases registered, 45 accused are government officials, three students and the rest (12) have not yet used the fake certificates for gaining any State-sponsored benefits. Stating that the complaints from the general public were on the rise, Mr. Annigeri said that people had become alert, nowadays.

In Chikmagalur district, some people had changed their names from Maaleru, a Brahmin sub-caste, to Maleru, a scheduled tribe, Mr. Annigeri said.