HAJI ABDUL GANI KHAN & ANR. versus UNION OF INDIA & ORS.

Citation: [2023] 5 S.C.R. 503 · Decided: 13-02-2023 · Supreme Court of India · Bench: SANJAY KISHAN KAUL · Disposal: Dismissed

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Judgment (excerpt)

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503
[2023] 5 S.C.R. 503
503
HAJI ABDUL GANI KHAN & ANR.
v.
UNION OF INDIA & ORS.
(Writ Petition (Civil) No. 237 of 2022)
FEBRUARY 13, 2023
[SANJAY KISHAN KAUL AND ABHAY S. OKA, JJ.]
Constitution of India – Arts.170 and 239A – Jammu and
Kashmir Reorganisation Act, 2019 – s.13 – Art. 170 forming part
of Chapter III of Part VI of the Constitution under the title “The
State Legislature” – Issue of applicability of Art.170 to the Union
Territory of J&K – Held: As far as the Legislative Assembly of the
Union territory of J&K is concerned, Art.170 will have no
application as it forms a part of Chapter III of Part VI which deals
with only the State Legislature – It has no application to the
Legislatures of Union Territories – The reason is that the Legislative
Assemblies of the concerned Union Territories will be governed by
the law made by the Parliament in accordance with Art.239A and
not by the provisions of Chapter III of Part VI – By virtue of s.13 of
the J&K Reorganisation Act, with effect from 31st October 2019,
Art. 239A became applicable to the Union Territory of J&K.
Delimitation Act, 2002 – s.9 – Jammu and Kashmir
Reorganisation Act, 2019 – ss.60 and 62 – Action of constituting a
Delimitation Commission for the Union Territory of Jammu and
Kashmir under provisions of the Delimitation Act, 2002 and exercise
of delimitation undertaken by the Commission – Readjustment of
seats – Legality and validity of – Held: Part V of the J&K
Reorganisation Act deals with the Delimitation of Constituencies –
By virtue of clause (a) of sub-section (1) of s.62, the provisions of
the Delimitation Act, 2002 were made applicable to the Union
Territory of J & K with effect from 31st October 2019 – Sub-section
(1) of s.60 provides that the exercise of the division of the newly
constituted Union Territory into 90 assembly constituencies and
providing for reservation may be undertaken by the Election
Commission – However, the purport of s.62 is that if a Delimitation
Commission is constituted under the Delimitation Act 2002, the
exercise provided by clauses (a) to (c) of sub-section (1) of s.60
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SUPREME COURT REPORTS
[2023] 5 S.C.R.
shall be carried out by the Delimitation Commission – Sub-section
(2) of s.62 refers to readjustment of the constituencies – Purport of
sub-section (2) of s.62 is that readjustment means the creation of
90 constituencies in the newly set up Union territory – Thus, the
process of readjustment contemplated by sub-section (2) of s.62 is
nothing but the exercise of delimitation under sub-section (1) of
s.60.
Delimitation Act, 2002 – s.9 – Jammu and Kashmir
Reorganisation Act, 2019 – ss.62 and 63 – Constitution of
Delimitation Commission for the Union Territory of Jammu and
Kashmir – Exercise of delimitation/ readjustment of the constituencies
undertaken on the basis of 2011 census figures – Challenge to –
Held: By virtue of clause (b) of sub-section (1) of s.62 of the J&K
Reorganisation Act, the year 2001 appearing in sub-section (1) of
s.9 of the Delimitation Act, 2002 will have to be read as 2011 –
Thus, nothing illegal about the exercise of delimitation/ readjustment
of the constituencies undertaken by the Delimitation Commission
for purposes of dividing the Union Territory into 90 constituencies
on the basis of the 2011 census figures – Clause (b) of sub-Section
(1) of s.62 of the J&K Reorganisation Act amended the Delimitation
Act, 2002 by providing that words and figures ‘census held in the
year 2001’ appearing in the Delimitation Act shall be construed as
‘census held in the year 2011’ – To its application to the Union
territory of J & K, the year 2001 in sub-section (1) of s.9 of the
Delimitation Act, 2002 has been substituted by the year 2011 and
therefore, distribution of seats in the House of the People and seats
assigned to the Legislative Assembly will have to be readjusted on
the basis of 2011 census and the delimitation will have to be carried
out on the basis of the figures of the census held in the year 2011 –
Effect of s.63 is that once the exercise of readjustment/delimitation
is made on the basis of 2011 census figures, the same will be frozen
till the relevant figures of the first census taken after 2026 are
available – Therefore, the exercise of delimitation/readjustment of
the seats in the Union Territory of J & K was required to be made
by the Delimitation Commission on the basis of the figures of the
2011 census – In view of s.63, further readjustment can 

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