JUDGMENT :

Pushpendra Singh Bhati, J.

Scheduled Areas are constitutionally protected, but not constitutionally frozen.

1. The present batch of writ petitions namely, D.B. Civil Writ Petition No. 3118/2025, D.B. Civil Writ Petition No. 11117/2022, D.B. Civil Writ Petition No. 874/2025, D.B. Civil Writ Petition No. 8781/2025, D.B. Civil Writ Petition No. 15765/2025, D.B. Civil Petition No. 700/2025, D.B. Civil Petition No. 4831/2024, D.B. Civil Petition No. 13334/2019, D.B. Civil Petition No. 11112/2022, D.B. Civil Petition No. 3748/2024, D.B. Civil Petition No. 4872/2024, D.B. Civil Petition No.5131/2024, D.B. Civil Petition No. 8470/2024, reserved on 25.11.2025 and D.B. Civil Writ Petition No. 23310/2025 reserved on 18.12.2025, assail the legality, validity and constitutional permissibility of Notifications issued by the State Government. By the said notifications, the State, while purporting to exercise powers under Section 3 read with Section 329 of the Rajasthan Municipalities Act, 2009 (hereinafter referred to as ‘the Act of 2009’), has, inter alia, included the Scheduled Area of various villages/gram panchayats within the territorial limits of the Municipal Corporation. Due to the commonality of assailment, the writ petitions mentioned hereinabove are being decided together.

1.1. At the outset, for the sake of brevity and convenience, in the present adjudication, a tabular chart depicting the particulars regarding the assailment herein, is as follows:

1.2. Since all the instant writ petitions arise out of a common controversy, though with minor variations in individual factual settings, this Court considers it appropriate, for the purpose of analogous adjudication, to treat D.B. Civil Writ Petition No. 874/2025 (Gram Panchayat Balicha, Panchayat Samiti Girva, District Udaipur through its Sarpanch Smt. Laxmi Bai Gameti v. State of Rajasthan & Ors.) as the lead case. Accordingly, the factual matrix, prayers and legal submissions are being noticed with reference to the said lead petition. The submissions advanced by the parties and the findings recorded herein shall, unless otherwise specifically indicated, govern and apply to all the connected writ petitions.

1.3. D.B. Civil Writ Petition No. 874/2025 (Gram Panchayat Balicha, Panchayat Samiti Girva, District Udaipur through its Sarpanch Smt. Laxmi Bai Gameti v. State of Rajasthan & Ors.) was filed claiming the following reliefs:

“It is therefore most humbly prayed that this writ petition may kindly be allowed.

That by an appropriate writ, order and direction be issued and the notification dated 17.06.2022 issued by is Excellency Hon’ble governor of the Rajasthan (Annexure- 5), may kindly be declare highly illegal;, unconstitutional and same may kindly be quashed and set aside.

That by an appropriate writ, order and direction be issued and the declaration may kindly be made that the provision of Rajasthan Municipal Act, 2009 is not applicable in the area specified under the 5th Schedule of the Constitution of India as called TSP Area of the State of Rajasthan.

That the any other relief, which this Hon’ble Court deems fit to protect and maintained the healthy judicial system in State of Rajasthan , by which the petitioner may get full justice may also be allowed.”

2. The present controversy, insofar as it concerns Village Balicha, arises from the issuance of the impugned Notification dated 26.12.2024 by the State Government, whereby Revenue Village Balicha, falling within Gram Panchayat Balicha, Panchayat Samiti Girva, District Udaipur, was brought within the territorial limits of the Udaipur Municipal Corporation in purported exercise of powers under Section 3 read with Section 329 of the Act of 2009. Significantly, Village Balicha stands expressly notified as a Scheduled Area under the Scheduled Areas (State of Rajasthan) Order, 2018 (Constitution Order No. 270) issued under Article 244(1) of the Constitution of India, and its scheduled status is thus constitutionally secured and undi