AMARAVILA KRISHNAN NAIR Vs. ELECTION COMMISSIONER OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) WE dismissed this petition brought under Art. 226 of the Constitution on the 20th of this month. WE did not then give our reasons, but promised to give them later. That we now proceed to do.

(2.) SPEAKING for myself, I should think that this petition does not lie in view of Art. 329 of the Constitution. That article which is headed. "bar to interference by courts in electoral matters" says: "notwithstanding anything in this Constitution (a) the validity of any law relating to the delimitation of constituencies or the allotment of seats to such constituencies, made or purporting to be made under Art. 327 or Art. 328, shall not be called in question in any court; (b) no election to either House of Parliament or to the house or either House of the Legislature of a State shall be called in question except by an election petition presented to such authority and in such manner as may be provided for by or under any law made by the appropriate legislature. "

(3.) IT would appear that before the issue of the writ, even before the petition was brought, the first respondent Election Commission had announced that a writ would issue on the 17th August fixing the date of the poll as the 17th September. And, when it was brought, the petition prayed that "this Honourable High Court be pleased to issue a writ of mandamus or other appropriate writs, directions, or orders restraining respondents 1 to 3 from holding general elections to the legislative assembly of the Kerala State as notified on 17th September, 1970 and directing respondents 1 to 3 to effect a proper revision of electoral rolls of the assembly constituencies for the Kerala State in accordance with the provisions contained in S. 21 of the Representation of the People Act of 1950 and the registration of Electors Rules of 1960. " IT has been amended after the issue of the writ and now it prays that "this Hon: High Court be pleased to issue a writ of mandamus or other appropriate writs, directions or orders restraining respondents 1 to 3 from holding general elections to the legislative assembly of the Kerala State as notified on 17th September, 1970 and to issue a writ of certiorari or other appropriate writs, directions or orders quashing the notification for holding the general election to the legislative assembly of the Kerala State as on 17th September, 1970 or in the alternative to declare as improper, void and illegal the revised electoral rolls of the Assembly constituencies in the State of Kerala as existing on 15th January, 1970 (as asserted by the 1st Respondent) and as revised again and published on or before 8th August, 1970 as stated by the 1st Respondent in Exhibit R5 and directing respondents 1 to 3 to effect a proper revision of the electoral rolls for the assembly constituencies in Kerala State in conformity with the provisions contained in S. 21 of the Representation of the People Act of 1951 before holding the General Elections for the Legislative Assembly of the Kerala state:"