N.G. NATRAJ S/O N.C. ESHWARAPPA AND N.D. GURUMURTHY S/O BHOVI DHYAMAPPA Vs. THE STATE ELECTION COMMISSION REPRESENTED BY ITS STATE ELECTION COMMISSIONER AND THE PRINCIPAL SECRETARY THE PANCHAYAT RAJ AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT REPRESENTED B

JUDGEMENT

(1.) W .P. No. 36337/2010 and W.P. Nos. 36548 -36549/2010 are clubbed, heard together and are being disposed of by this common order, as the subject matter of both the petitions is the grievance over reserving the Anagodu constituency in Davanagere Zilla Panchayat for Scheduled Tribe -Woman [ST(W)].

(2.) SRI Ravivarma Kumar, the learned Senior Counsel appearing for Sri D. Nagaraj for the Petitioner in W.P. No. 36337/2010 submits that the constituency in question is always reserved either for Scheduled Caste (SC) or Scheduled Tribe (ST) for the last 20 years (4 terms). The particulars of the reservation in the said constituency are put in the tabular form hereinbelow : <FRM>JUDGEMENT_1647_TLKAR0_2010.htm</FRM>

(3.) SRI Ravivarma Kumar brings to my notice the provisions contained in Article 243D(1) of the Constitution of India. The said provision is extracted hereinbelow : 243 -D. Reservation of seats. -(1) Seats shall be reserved for - (a) the Scheduled Castes; and (b) the Scheduled Tribes, in every Panchayat and the number of seats so reserved shall bear, as nearly as may be, the same proportion to the total number of seats to be filled by direct election in that Panchayat as the population of the Scheduled Castes in that Panchayat area or of the Scheduled Tribes in that Panchayat area bears to the total population of that area and such seats may be allotted by rotation to different constituencies in a Panchayat