Judgment

KHALID, J. :- 1. This appeal by certificate is directed against the Judgment of a Division Bench of the Delhi High Court, in C.W. No. 731 of 1971 : (reported in (1974) 2 Serv LR 574). The prayer in the writ petition is for the issuance of an appropriate writ, order or direction declaring (a) the Police Forces (Restriction of Rights) Act No. 33 of 1966 (for short the Act) as ultra vires the Constitution,

(b) the Police Forces (Restriction of Rights) Rules, 1966 and Police Forces (Restriction of Rights) Amendment Rules, 1970 (for short the Rules) as ultra vires of Act 33 of 1966 and the Constitution of India,

(c) that the Circular dated 1st April, 1971 as invalid, illegal, ultra vires, null and void and

(d) for a declaration that the Delhi Police Non-Gazetted Karmachari Sangh, petitioner No. 1 in the writ petition, is a legally and validly constituted service organisation.

2. The first appellant is the Non-Gazetted Karmachari Sangh (for short the Sangh) and the appellants Nos. 2 to 7, its members. The High Court dismissed the petition holding that the challenge was not sustainable and that neither the Act nor the Rules violated any provisions of the Constitution.

The High Court dealt at length with the preliminary objections that a challenge based on the violation of any fundamental right was not permissible in view of the emergency declared by the President of India, in December, 1977. This need not detain us now in this Judgment.

3. The appellants case is that the Act referred above violates Art. 19(l)(c) of the Constitution of India and that the restrictions imposed by it, being arbitrary, violate Art. 14 of the Constitution. The Non-Gazetted members of the Delhi Police Force wanted to form an organisation of their own and for that purpose constituted the Karmachari Union in 1966 and applied for its registration under the Trade Union Act, 1926. Initially the registration asked for was declined. Then Act 33 of 1966 was enacted. It came into force on 2nd December, 1966. An application for recognition was again made on 9th December, 1966. Recognition was granted by the Central Government on 12th December, 1966. The Non-Gazetted members of the Delhi Police Force were permitted to become members of the Sangh. On 12th December, 1966, the Central Government made rules under the Act which were amended in December, 1970. The circular in question was issued under these rules. The Circular attempts to derecognise the Sangh. This occasioned the filing of the writ petition.

4. Before considering the rival contentions urged before us, it would be useful to refer to the salient features of the Act to appreciate its ambit and the restrictions imposed by its provisions. The Act was enacted to delineate the restrictions imposed on the rights conferred by Part III of the Constitution in their application to the members of the forces charged with the maintenance of public order so as to ensure the proper discharge of their duties and the maintenance of discipline among them. The Parliament. obviously has this power under Art. 33 of the Constitution of India. The Provisions of the Act seek to place certain restrictions on members of the police force in exercise of their fundamental rights guaranteed by Art. 19(l)(c) to form Associations or Unions. Section 3 of the Act reads as follows :

"3(l). No member of a police force shall without the express sanction of the Central Government or of the prescribed authority-(a) be a member of, or be associated in any way with, any trade union, labour union, political association or with any class of trade unions, labour unions or political associations: or (b) be a member of, or be associated in any way with, any other society, institution, association or organisation that is not recognised as part of the force of which he is a member or is not of a purely social, recreational or religious nature; or (c) communicate with the press or publish or cause to be published any book, letter or other document except w