Mumbai, Mar 11 (PTI) The Maharashtra Legislative Council on Wednesday cleared a bill that allows winning SC/ST candidates of village-level elections to submit their caste validation certificate within a period of one year after the results.

Rural Development Minister Hasan Mushrif tabled the bill and it was unanimously passed by the house.

Mushrif said, After the village-level elections (gram panchayat) get over, the winning candidates elected from reserve wards of SCs/STs will get one-year period to submit their caste validation certificate.

They can submit a receipt of application at the time of contesting elections, he said.

Some 1,500 gram panchayat are likely to hold elections this summer, he said.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)