MANGAL SINGH Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966 -hereinafter called 'the Act'- was enacted with the object of reorganising the State of Punjab. By the Act which came into force on November 1. 1966,the eastern hill area of the old State were transferred to the Union territory of Himachal Pradesh; the territory known as Chandigarh in Kharar tahsil was constituted into a Union territory; and the remaining territory was divided between the new State of Punjab and the Haryana State. The odd State of Punjab had a bi-cameral Legislature with 154 members in the Legislative Assembly and 51 members in the Legislative Council. Under S. 13 of the Act as from November 1, 1966, the Legislative Assembly of the new State of Punjab consists of 87 members and the Haryana Legislative Assembly consists of 54 members. The new State of Punjab has also a bi-cameral Legislature. Out of the original membership of 51, 16 members whose names are set out in the Seventh Schedule to the Act ceased to be members of the Legislative Council, and the remaining members continued to be members of the Legislative Council of the new State of Punjab. Out of the 16 members who ceased to be member's of the Legislative Council, 14 members, it is claimed by the appellants, belong to the Haryana area and 2 to be Himachal Pradesh Union territory.

(2.) The Act was challenged as "illegal and ultra vires of the Constitution" on diverse grounds in a writ petition filed by the two appellants in the High Court of Punjab. The High Court rejected the petition.

(3.) In this Court two contentions were urged in support of the appeal: (1) Constitution of the Legislative Assembly of Haryana by S. 13 (1) of the Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966, violates the mandatory provisions of Art. 170 (1) of the Constitution; and (2) By enacting that 8 members of the Legislative Council who are residents of the Union territory of Chandigarh shall continue to sit in the Legislative Council in the new State of Punjab, and by enacting that the members elected to the Legislative Council from the Haryana area shall be unseated, there is denial of equality.