The Andhra Pradesh High Court has quashed the Tahsildar's rejection of a mother's application for a Family Member Certificate following the death of her government-employee son, holding that she could independently apply for the certificate even though he was married.

For context, under G.O.Ms.No.145, Revenue (SER.II) Department, a Family Member Certificate may be issued by the Tahsildar upon the death of a government servant and also to members of the general public for availing government schemes and other purposes, subject to the procedure and safeguards prescribed therein.

A Single Judge Bench of Justice B. S. Bhanumathi allowed the writ petition challenging the endorsement issued by the Tahsildar and directed him to follow the procedure and issue the certificate to the petitioner, along with other eligible family members.

The Court observed:

"As the petitioner claims to be the nominee to the service benefits of her son, she might have applied for a family member certificate. Apart from being nominee, the petitioner, being the mother of the deceased government employee, even in the presence of wife or / and child / children of the deceased employee, is a legal heir and a family member. As such, the petitioner can apply for issuance of a family member certificate. After conducting an enquiry by following the above stated procedure, if at all, any other family member (s) is / are found to be entitled to such certificate, he / she / they may also be included in the certificate, along with the mother of the deceased employee, but she cannot be made to wait for issuance of the certificate till the wife chooses to seek a family member certificate..."

The case concerned the mother of a Police Constable who died while in service. She submitted an online application for a Family Member Certificate to avail legal benefits. She was also shown as the nominee in her son's service records.

However, the Tahsildar, rejected the application by an endorsement, stating that since the deceased was married, his wife and children, if any, were to be considered as his family members.

The Tahsildar noted that the deceased had instituted divorce proceedings against his wife, but the proceedings were dismissed following his death. It consequently stated that the wife's application for a Family Member Certificate could be considered after due enquiry.

The endorsement also stated that the mother of a married son could not be considered a family member for issuance of the certificate. It further recorded that the petitioner had sought a certificate excluding the deceased's wife.

Challenging the rejection, the petitioner relied upon G.O.Ms.No.145, Revenue (SER.II) Department, which prescribes the procedure for issuance of Family Member Certificates. Under the procedure, the Tahsildar is required to issue a seven-day notice, conduct an enquiry and record a panchanama before deciding whether to issue or reject the certificate.

The petitioner contended that her application could not be made dependent on the deceased's wife applying for a certificate, and that other eligible family members could be included after the prescribed enquiry.

Considering the procedure under the Government Order, the Court found the impugned endorsement to be "apparently illegal", holding that the petitioner, as the mother of the deceased government employee, could apply for the certificate.

The Court further observed that any other family members found entitled could also be included following the enquiry.

Consequently, the Court set aside the endorsement and directed the Tahsildar to follow the procedure prescribed under G.O.Ms.No.145 and issue the Family Member Certificate to the petitioner if she was found to be the mother of the deceased, along with the names of other family members, if any.

The writ petition was accordingly allowed.

Case Title: Mandula Khasim Bi v. State of Andhra Pradesh & Ors.

Case No.: W.P. No. 14703 of 2026

Counsel for the Petitioner: Ratan Mohan Medida

Counsel for the Respondents: Government Pleader for Revenue

Click Here To Read/Download Order