The Rajasthan Panchayat (Amendment) Ordinance, 1955, was valid as it validated the actions of the State Government in reconstituting the Panchayat for Osia and Dhunaria.

WANCHOO, C. J.

( 1 ) THIS is an application under Article 226 of the Constitution by Jugraj, and arises in the following circumstances:

( 2 ) THE case relates to village Osia in which a Panchayat had been established under the Marwar Village Panchayat Act of 1945 (hereinafter called the Marwar act ). Prom the 1-1-1954, the Rajasthan Panchayat Act (No. 21) of 1953 (hereinafter called the Act) came into force. A notification was issued under the Act for the establishment of a Panchayat consisting of two villages namely Osia and Dhunaria. Thereafter, elections were held to this Panchayat of the two villages, and certain persons were elected. The applicant contends that under Section 93 (2) of the Act the Panchayats established under the Marwar Act were deemed to have been established under the Act from the date of its commencement, i. e. 1-1-1954. Therefore, it was not open to the State Government by means of a notification, dated 13-11-1954, to establish another Panchayat consisting of Osia and dhunaria, and that if the State Government wanted to add any area to the Osia panchayat, it should have taken action under Section 86 of the Act. No action was, however, taken under Section 86, and as the notification of 13-111954, establishing one Panchayat for two villages namely Osia and Dhunaria really amounted to adding further area to the existing Panchayat of Osia, the establishment of a Panchayat for Osia and Dhunaria was ultra vires of the powers of the State Government. A similar application relating to the Panchayat of Bar came to this Count, and was decided by a Bench, of which one of us was a party, on 8-9-1955 (vide - bhomaram v. State of Rajas-than, Civil Writ No. 25 of 1955 (Raj) (A ). It was held in that case that it was not open to the State Government to add areas to existing Panchayats without recourse to the provisions of Section 86 of the Act, and as that was not done in the case of the Panchayat at Bar, the reconstitution of the Bar Panchayat by addition of certain then villages to it was held to be against the provisions of the Act.

( 3 ) SINCE then an Ordinance has been issued by His Highness the Raj pramukh, which is titled as the Rajasthan Panchayat (Amendment ). ordinance (order 15) of 1955 (hereinafter called the Ordinance), It came into force at the end of October, 1955. The question, therefore, arises whether in view of this Ordinance the decision in bhomarams case (A), remains good law or not.

( 4 ) THE Ordinance consists of four sections, but we are concerned with Section 3 by which two subsections have been added to Section 93 of the Act. These additional sub-sections are as follows:

" (3) In making a direction for the re-constitution of a panchayat under sub-section (2) the State Government may order any area to be included in or excluded from the Panchayat circle of such panchayat and may issue further directions as to the number of panches of the panchayat for the altered area and as to other matters relating to such reconstitution and 16-election of panches thereto; and nothing in section 86 shall apply or be deemed ever to have applied to such inclusion or exclusion. 4. Notwithstanding any defect or lack of form, procedure, jurisdiction or power and notwithstanding anything contained in any judgment, decree or order (i) all Panchayats of the category specified in Sub-section (2), which have been notified after the commencement of this Act to have; been established under Section 9 or to have been reconstituted under Subsection (2) of this section shall be deemed to have been reconstituted, as respects their Panchayat circle, under Sub-section (2) read with Subsection (3), of this section, and (ii) all orders made under Section 4 as to the number of Panches of such panchayat or as to other matters relating to the reconstitution of such panchayats and the re-election of Panches thereto as well as all elections held in pursuance of such orders shall be deemed to have been made, or held, as the