Chennai, Mar 30 (IANS): The Kuravar community has alleged that the Tamil Nadu government officials, including tehsildars and village officers, are issuing community certificates of their caste to people belonging to others castes.

As per the community leaders, they have already petitioned the SC/ST welfare department of the state government and are planning to meet Chief Minister M.K. Stalin soon.

S. Thangavelu, state president, the Hindu Kuravar Samuthaya Committee, has approached the Tenkasi district collector against former tehsildar of Kadaynnnur, Athinarayanan, and Village Administrative Officer (VAO) Puliyangadi Balasubramanian.

Thangavelu while speaking to IANS said: "We have already written to the Tamil Nadu government and have now cited the examples of 67 people belonging to Pachaikarar and Gangaikarar communities who are non Scheduled Castes getting certificates under the name of Kuravar community. The VAO had accepted the papers and forwarded them to the tehsildar who issued the certificates."

He said that the community believes that the revenue department officials have received kickbacks in providing certificates of Kuravars to non-Kuravars. A big racket is working across the state to seize the benefits of the Kuravar community.

Thangavelu said that this was happening across the state and in most cases, those who benefit from these certificates are either Backward Castes or Most Backward Castes (MBCs) and in rare cases forward castes also.

The Kuravar community leader said that they are planning to meet the Chief Minister and request him for a detailed police investigation into the matter and to unearth the scam being carried out under the auspicious of certain officials of the state revenue department.

The action of the revenue officials amounts to sabotaging the reservation policy enacted by the Government under the constitution and that it cannot be allowed to go unpunished, he added.