JUDGMENT :

Subramonium Prasad, J.

(Prayer: Petition filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India praying for the issuance of a writ of Declaration, to declare the “Proviso” in Section 167(1)(a) of the Companies Act 2013, as inserted vide the Companies (Amendment) Act 2017 as ultra vires the Articles 14, 19(1)(g) of the Constitution of India and declare illegal and null and void.)

1. The challenge in the instant writ petition is to the vires of the proviso to Section 167(1)(a) of the Companies Act, as inserted by the Companies (Amendment) Act 2017. The same is extracted hereunder:-

“167. Vacation of office of director.

(1) The office of a director shall become vacant in case— (a) he incurs any of the disqualifications specified in section 164;

2. The petitioner is a Company Secretary. The petitioner herein had previously challenged the impugned proviso before this Court through WP.No.22813 of 2018. However, the same was withdrawn on 19.11.2019 with the permission of the Court as the same was filed in the nature of a Public Interest Litigation. The petitioner has subsequently filed the instant writ petition. It is to be noted that the petitioner was not granted any liberty to insti