The Supreme
Court on Monday dismissed a plea challenging the government's decision to
constitute the delimitation commission for redrawing the legislative assembly
and Lok Sabha constituencies in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
A bench of Justices S K Kaul and A S Oka delivered the
verdict on a plea filed by two Kashmir residents.
While pronouncing the verdict, Justice Oka said
nothing in this judgment shall be construed as giving an imprimatur to the
exercise of power under clauses one and three of Article 370 of the
Constitution.
The bench observed that issue of validity of the
exercise of power relating to Article 370 is subject matter of petitions
pending before the apex court.
The top court is seized of petitions challenging the
constitutional validity of the Centre's decision to abrogate provisions of
Article 370 on August 5, 2019.
Several petitions have been filed in the apex court
challenging the Centre's decision to abrogate provisions of Article 370 and the Jammu
and Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019, which split J-K into two Union
Territories Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh.
By abrogating Article 370, the Central government had
revoked the special status of Jammu and Kashmir.
The apex court had on December 1 last year reserved
its verdict on the plea challenging the government's decision to constitute the
delimitation commission.
During the hearing on December 1 last year, the Centre
had told the top court that the delimitation commission formed to redraw the
legislative assembly and Lok Sabha constituencies in Jammu and Kashmir was
empowered to do so.
Seeking dismissal of the plea, Solicitor General
Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre, had argued that the Jammu and Kashmir
Reorganisation Act, 2019 does not preclude the establishment of Delimitation
Commission by the Central government.
On March 6, 2020, Union Ministry of Law and Justice
(Legislative Department) had issued a notification in exercise of power under
section 3 of the Delimitation Act, 2002, constituting a Delimitation
Commission, with former Supreme Court judge (Retd) Ranjana Prakash
Desai as the chairperson.
The counsel appearing for the two petitioners, Haji
Abdul Gani Khan and Mohammad Ayub Mattoo, had argued that the delimitation
exercise was carried out in contravention of the scheme of the Constitution and
alteration of boundaries and inclusion of extended areas should not have been
done.
The plea had sought declaration that the increase in
the number of seats from 107 to 114 (including 24 seats in Pakistan occupied
Kashmir) in Jammu and Kashmir is ultra vires constitutional provisions and
statutory provisions, particularly under section 63 of the Jammu and Kashmir
Reorganisation Act, 2019.
It had said the last delimitation commission was set
up on July 12, 2002 in exercise of powers conferred by section 3 of the
Delimitation Act, 2002 after the 2001 census to carry out the exercise
throughout the country.
The plea had said the commission had issued guidelines
and methodology for the delimitation of assembly and parliamentary
constituencies vide letter dated July 5, 2004 along with the constitutional and
legal provisions.
"It clearly stated that the total number of
existing seats in the Legislative Assemblies of all states, including UTs of
the National Capital Region and Pondicherry, as fixed based on the 1971 census
shall remain unaltered till the first census to be taken after the year
2026," the plea had submitted.
It had sought to declare as unconstitutional the
notification dated March 6, 2020 constituting the delimitation commission to
take up delimitation in the UT of J-K and states of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh,
Manipur, and Nagaland by the Centre.
The plea had also challenged the consequential
omission of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur and Nagaland from the process of
delimitation vide notification dated March 3, 2021, claiming that it amounts to
classification and violates Article 14 (equality before law) of the
Constitution.