V. Chitambaresh, J.

1. The issue pertains to the reservation of the wards in the Corporation of Kollam for the ensuing election to the local bodies in terms of the Kerala Municipality Act, 1994 ['the Act' for short]. Art. 243T of the constitution of India provides for the reservation of seats for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes including women in every Municipality. The number of seats so reserved shall be proportionate to the population of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in the Municipal area when compared to the total population of that area. The State Government has fixed the number of seats to be reserved for Scheduled Castes in the category of women in the Corporation of Kollam as 2 only. Seats have also been reserved for women to the extent of 50% of the total number including those belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes under the Act. Both Art. 243T of the Constitution of India as well as Section 6 of the Act speak of reservation by "rotation' to the different constituencies (wards) in a Municipality. How best the wards in the Corporation of Kollam could be ear-marked for reservation by rotation in accordance with the constitutional and statutory mandate is the question? I heard Mr. S. Abhilash, Advocate on behalf of the petitioner, Mr. Murali Purushothaman, Standing Counsel on behalf of the State Election Commission and Mr. Bobby John Pulikkaparambil, Government Pleader. I also heard Mr. M.K. Chandramohan Das, Standing Counsel for the Corporation of Kollam and Mr. K. Subash Chandra Bose, Advocate for the additional respondents.

2. There are altogether 55 constituencies (wards) in the Corporation of Kollam including the Thrikkadavur Panchayat annexed to it by bifurcation to which the election has to be conducted. 50% of the total number of 55 seats works out to 27 1/2 which shall be fixed to the next higher integer of 28 in view of the fraction of half 1/2. That the figure shall be fixed to the next higher integer in the case of fraction is discernible from Sections 6(6)and 6(7) of the Act which gives no room for any doubt. The reservation has to be effected by rotation to different constituencies obviously to prevent successive reservation to the same constituency. Such is the intention can well be gathered as held in Venugopal V.R. & Anr. v. Secretary, Tripunithura Municipality & Ors. (Laws (Ker.) 2010-9-103 : 2010 (4) KHC 47). Thus a reserved constituency shall not continue to be such and a general constituency can be converted to a reserved constituency for the next election.

3. Sub-sections (6), (7), (8) and (9) of Section 6 of the Act which have a bearing on this case is extracted below:-

6. Constitution of Council:-

(1) X X X X

(2) x x x x

(3) x x x x

(4) x x x x

(5) x x x x

(6) Fifty per cent (in the case of fraction, it shall be fixed to the next higher integer) of the total number of seats reserved under sub-section (5) shall be reserved for women belongings to the Scheduled Castes, or as the case may be, the Scheduled Tribes:

Provided that where the number of seats reserved for the Scheduled Castes or as the case may be, the Scheduled Tribes under sub-section (5) is only one, that seat need not be reserved for women belonging to the Scheduled Castes or, as the case may be, the Scheduled Tribes.

(7) Fifty per cent (in the case of fraction, it shall be fixed to the next higher integer) (including the number of seats reserved for women belonging to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes) of the total number of seats to be filled by direct election in every Municipality shall be reserved by the Government for women and such seats may be allotted by rotation to different wards in a Municipality as the state Election Commission or an officer authorised by it may, by notification in the Gazette, determine for each general election.

(8) Nothing contained in sub-sections (5) to (7) shall be deemed to prevent persons belonging to the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes or women from being