JUDGMENT

(Prayer: Petition filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India praying for a Writ of Declaration to declare Section 9 of the Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act, 1988 (Act 45 of 1988, as amended by the Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Amendment Act, 2016) pertaining to qualification of appointment of Judicial Member and Section 32(2)(a) of the Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act, 1988 (Act 45 of 1988 as amended by the Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Amendment Act, 2016) as unconstitutional as it runs counter to the doctrine of Separation of Powers, which is the basic structure and in violation of Article 14 of the Constitution of India.

Munishwar Nath Bhandari, J.

1. This writ petition challenges Sections 9 and 32(2)(a) of the Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act, 1988 [for brevity, "the Act of 1988"], as amended by the Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Amendment Act, 2016.

2. The petitioner, appearing in person, and learned counsel for the respondent submit that so far as the challenge to the constitutional validity of Section 9 of the Act of 1988 is concerned, the writ petition has become infructuous, as Section 9 of the Act of 1