State Legislature has legislative power and there is no conflict with reservation provisions given under constitution.

K.A. Swami, C.J.

This appeal is preferred against the order of the learned single Judge dated 9. 1996 rejecting W.P. No. 12469 of 1996, in which the petitioner purporting to espouse the public cause, has challenged the Constitutionality of Secs. 11, 20 and 32 of the Tamil Nadu Panchayats Act, 1994 (hereinafter referred to as the Act) "insofar as the said provisions provide reservation on the basis of 1991 census without preceded by a legislative delimitation order and the reservation beyond 2000 as ultra vires of Art.230 read with Arts.81, 82 and 170 of the Constitution."

2. The Panchayats Act insofar as it relates to reservation, has been enacted pursuant to Part VIII of the Constitution read with the exclusive power of the State under Entry 5, List II of Seventh Schedule of the Constitution. Sec. 11 of the Act deals with reservation of seats for Scheduled Casts and Scheduled Tribes in Village Panchayats and it reads thus:

"11 (1) Seats shall be reserved for the persons belonging to the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes in every Village Panchayat and the number of seats so reserved shall bear as nearly as may be, the same proportion to the total number of seats to be filled by direct election in that village panchayat as the population of the Scheduled Castes in that village Panchayat area or of the Scheduled Tribes in that village Panchayat area bears to the total population of that area:

Provided that for the first election for the village Panchayat to be held immediately after the commencement of this Act, the provisional population figures of the panchayat village as published in relation to 1991 census shall be deemed to be the population of the panchayat village.

(2) Seats shall be reserved for women belonging to the Scheduled Caste and the Scheduled Tribes from among the seats reserved for the persons belonging to the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes which shall not be less than one third of the total number of seats reserved for the persons belonging to Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes.

(3) Seats shall be reserved for woman in the village Panchayat and the number of seats reserved for women shall be, as nearly as may be, one third (including the number of seats reserved for women belonging to Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes) of the total number of seats in the Village Panchayat; Provided that such seats reserved for women shall be allotted by rotation to different wards in such a manner as the Inspector may, by notification, direct.

(4) The reservation of seats under Sub-secs.(l) and (2) shall cease to have effect on the expiration of the period specified in Art.334 of the Constitution."

Sec.20 deals with reservation of seats for scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in Panchayat Union Councils. Sec.32 deals with reservation of seats to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in every District Panchayat.

3. The contention is that the reservation is provided to Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes on the basis of the proviso to Sub-sec.(1) of Sec. 11 and Sub-sec.(1) of Sec.20 and so also Sub-sec.(1) of Sec.32, providing that for the first election for the district panchayat to be held immediately after the commencement of the Act, the provisional population figures of the district panchayat area as published in relation to 1991 census, shall be deemed to be the population of that district panchayat area. The other contentions is that Sub-sec.(4) of each one of these sections is inconsistent with Art.334 because it does not provide that the members of the scheduled castes and scheduled tribes in the Village Panchayats, Panchayat Union councils and district Panchayats will continue beyond 2000 years until the expiration of their period, irrespective of the fact that the reservation for scheduled castes and Scheduled Tribes ceases to be operative on the expiry of 2000 A.D. With regard to 1991 census as the basis for reservation, the contention is based on the provisions conta