The 23rd Amendment to the Constitution, which extended the reservation of seats and special representation for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes until 1980, was valid and did not violate Article 15 (1) of the Constitution, which prohibits discrimination on grounds of caste.

R. N. MISRA, J.

( 1 ) JAGANATH Prasad is one of the 140 Constituencies of the Orissa Legislative assembly. The petitioner a resident of a village in Buguda P. S. covered by the said constituency filed his nomination for election to the Orissa State Legislative assembly in the mid-term poll held in 1971. His nomination paper was however, not accepted on the ground that it was a reserved Constituency for Scheduled castes. The election was duly held end opposite party No. 7 was returned from the constituency. By this application, the petitioner challenges the reservation of the constituency for Scheduled Castes and consequently impugns the election of opposite party No. 7.

( 2 ) OF the several opposite parties, the Returning Officer -- opposite party No. 5, and the returned candidate --opposite party No. 7 -- have filed counter affidavit. The Union of India -- opposite party No. 1 --has entered appearance through counsel and has advanced arguments against the contentions raised in the writ petition though no counter affidavit has been filed.

( 3 ) THERE is no dispute that the Jaganath Prasad Constituency of the Orissa legislative Assembly is a reserved one for Scheduled Castes. The petitioner deposited the amount prescribed under Section 34 (1) (b) of the Representation of the People Act. 1951 but according to the Returning Officer, no nomination paper had at all been filed by him.

( 4 ) UNDER Article 334 of the Constitution, reservation of seats and special representation were provided, for, in the following manner in 1950:

"notwithstanding anything in the foregoing provisions of this part, the provisions of this Constitution relating to - (a) the reservation of seats for the Scheduled Castes and the scheduled Tribes in the House of the People and in the legislative Assemblies of the States; and (b) the representation of the Anglo-Indian Community in the house of the People and in the Legislative Assemblies of the states by nomination shall cease to have effect on the expiration of a period of ten years from the commencement of this Constitution. "

By the Constitution (Eighth Amendment) Act, 1959, the period of 10' years was replaced by the period of "20" years. Thus the reservation of seats and special representation were to cease after twenty years. Then came the Constitution (Twentythird Amendment) Act. , 1969, by which in place of "20" years. "30" years was substituted. As a result, the reservation of seats and special representation are to continue until 1980. In Orissa, mid-term poll was held for all the seats of the Orissa Legislative assembly in February-March, 1971. In view of the latest amendment to Article 334 of the Constitution, reservation of seats continued and under the Delimitation commission Act. 61 of 1962, delimitation of constituencies had been made as a result whereof, the Jaganath Prasad Constituency was made a reserved one.

( 5 ) IN this application the petitioner challenges the 23rd Amendment of the constitution by which the reservation of seats and special representation were extended upto 1980, and his counsel raises the following contentions-

(1) the amendment made by Parliament was without authority of the Constitution; (2) the amendment offends the provisions of Article 15 (1) of the constitution, and (3) the provisions of Section 9 of the Delimitation Commission Act are ultra vires Article 14 of the Constitution. We propose to deal with each of the contentions seriatim.

( 6 ) CONTENTION No. 1--According to Mr. Dora for the petitioner, when the constituent Assembly gave shape to the Constitution of India, it was the clear intention that the period of "ten years" indicated in Article 334 of the Constitution was not to be extended. Thus after the expiry of the tenth year, the reservation and special representation provided for by that Article were automatically to lapse. In support of such contention of his. Mr. Dora relies upon the Debates of the constituent Assembly and the statement made on the