Judgment

WANCHOO, J. : This petition challenges the constitutionality of a provision in the Constitution (Application to Jammu and Kashmir) Order, 1954 (hereinafter called the Order), made by the President under Art. 370(1) of the Constitution. The case of the petitioner is that he is registered as an elector in the Parliamentary Constituency of Delhi. As such he has a right to stand for election from any Parliament constituency in India. Six seats are allotted to the State of Jammu and Kashmir in the House of the People (Lok Sabha). Ordinarily, the election to these seats should have been by direct election from the territorial constituencies in the State as provided by Art. 81(1); but the President modified that Article in so far as it relates to the State of Jammu and Kashmir by Para 5(c) of the Order in these words :-

"Article 81 shall apply subject to the modification that the representatives of the State in the House of the ;People shall be appointed by the President on the recommendation of the Legislature of the State." The petitioner contends that the President had exceeded his powers when he made this modification, for he thereby substituted direct election to the House of