SATISH KUMAR SHARMA Vs. STATE OF RAJASTHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) D.B. Civil Writ Petition (PIL) No.19007/2019 has been filed challenging validity of the notifications dated 5.11.2019 and 18.10.2019, whereby the Municipal Corporation, Jaipur has been splitted into two Municipal Corporations namely; Jaipur Heritage and Jaipur Greater, mainly on the premise that it has been done only to avoid its election with a further relief to have elections of the Municipal Corporation, Jaipur within the time prescribed i.e. prior to 25.11.2019 or immediately thereafter in accordance with notifications dated 10.6.2019, 29.7.2019 and 14.8.2019.

(2.) In the D.B. Civil Writ Petition No.18880/2019, in addition to aforesaid relief, a further relief has been sought seeking quashment of the notification dated 18.10.2019 being ultra vires; but, during the course of arguments, learned counsel appearing for the petitioner did not press this relief; thus, essentially in both the writ petitions, the relief prayed for is almost identical i.e. the elections of the Municipal Corporation, Jaipur be conducted within the stipulated period i.e. prior to 25.11.2019 in the letter and spirit of Article 243U of the Constitution of India as term of the existing Municipal Corporation, Jaipur is coming to expire on 25.11.2019. Therefore, both the writ petitions are being decided vide this common order.

(3.) Facts in brief as emerge from both the writ petitions are that the Municipal Corporation, Jaipur was constituted on 26.11.2014 in pursuance of the elections held in the year 2014. Vide notification no.1523 dated 10.6.2019 (Annexure-2), the State Government, exercising its powers under Sections 6(1) and 9 of the Rajasthan Municipalities Act, 2009 (for brevity, 'the Act of 2009'), prescribed criteria for fixation of number of seats in different municipalities. For the Municipal Corporations with population above 15 lacs, the number of seats prescribed was 150.