Judgment

SHAH, J. : The Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966 -hereinafter called the Act - was enacted with the object of reorganising the State of Punjab. By the Act which came into force on November 1. 1966,the eastern hill area of the old State were transferred to the Union territory of Himachal Pradesh; the territory known as Chandigarh in Kharar tahsil was constituted into a Union territory; and the remaining territory was divided between the new State of Punjab and the Haryana State. The odd State of Punjab had a bi-cameral Legislature with 154 members in the Legislative Assembly and 51 members in the Legislative Council. Under S. 13 of the Act as from November 1, 1966, the Legislative Assembly of the new State of Punjab consists of 87 members and the Haryana Legislative Assembly consists of 54 members. The new State of Punjab has also a bi-cameral Legislature. Out of the original membership of 51, 16 members whose names are set out in the Seventh Schedule to the Act ceased to be members of the Legislative Council, and the remaining members continued to be members of the Legislative Council of the new State of Punjab. Out of the 16 members who ceased to be member s of the Legislative Council, 14 members, it is claimed by the appellants, belong to the Haryana area and 2 to be Himachal Pradesh Union territory.

2. The Act was challenged as "illegal and ultra vires of the Constitution" on diverse grounds in a writ petition filed by the two appellants in the High Court of Punjab. The High Court rejected the petition.

3. In this Court two contentions were urged in support of the appeal:

(1) Constitution of the Legislative Assembly of Haryana by S. 13 (1) of the Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966, violates the mandatory provisions of Art. 170 (1) of the Constitution; and

(2) By enacting that 8 members of the Legislative Council who are residents of the Union territory of Chandigarh shall continue to sit in the Legislative Council in the new State of Punjab, and by enacting that the members elected to the Legislative Council from the Haryana area shall be unseated, there is denial of equality.

4. By S. 24 of the Act it is provided that the total number of seats in the Legislative Assembly of Haryana "to be constituted at any time after the appointed day i. e. November 1, 1966 to be filled by persons chosen by direct election from territorial constituencies, shall be eighty-one." It is clear that S. 13 (1) which allocates fifty-four sitting members out of the members elected to the Legislative Assembly of the old State of Punjab to the Haryana area Legislative Assembly on November 1. 1966, is a temporary provision.

5. Constitution of the Legislative Assembly of Haryana on November 1, 1966, is it is contended, violative of Art. 170 of the Constitution. In terms Art. 170 enacts that a Legislative Assembly shall be constituted by members chosen by direct election from territorial constituencies, and that the Assembly shall consist of not more than five hundred and not less than sixty members. But Art. I70 is not the only provision having a bearing on the constitution of a Legislative Assembly.

6. By Art. 2 the Parliament may by law admit into the Union or establish new States on such terms and conditions as it thinks fit; and Art. 3 provides that the Parliament may by law

(a) form a new State by separation of territory from any State or by uniting two or more States or parts of States or by uniting any territory to a part of any States;

(b) increase the area of any State;

(c) diminish the area of any State

(d) alter the boundaries of any State

(e) alter the name of any State.

Any law referred to in Art. 2 or Art. 3 shall, it is provided by Art. 4 (1.), contain such provision for the amendment of the First Schedule and the Fourth Schedule as may be necessary to give effect to the provisions of the 1aw and may also contain such supplemental, incidental and consequential provisions (including provisions as to representation in Parliament and in the Legisla