The Governor cannot issue notifications creating autonomous districts from existing districts without compliance with constitutional provisions, particularly the Sixth Schedule, which requires legislative amendment by Parliament.

1. These two rules raise common questions of law and are disposed of by one judgment. Mainly the validity of the Notification No. TAD / R / 50/64 issued by the Governor of Assam on the 23rd November 1964 has been challenged. This notification will be referred to as 'the Notification' hereinafter and reads as follows :
"In exercise of the powers conferred by Clauses (c), (e) and (g) of sub-paragraph (3) of Paragraph 1 of the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution, the Governor of Assam after consideration of the report of the Commission appointed in this behalf under this Department Notification No. TAD / Con / 21/62/293, dated the 28th August 1963 is pleased to create a new autonomous district to be called the Jowai District by excluding the Jowai Subdivision of the United Khasi - Jaintia Hills District with effect from 1st December 1964. The boundaries of the Jowai District shall be the boundaries of the Jowai Subdivision of the United Khasi - Jaintia Hills District."
The petitioner Edwingson Bareh in the petition giving rise to Civil Rule No. 286 of 1964 is the Chief Executive Member, District Council, United Khasi - Jaintia Hills and the petitioner Gilbert Lyton in the petition giving rise to Civil Rule No. 303 of 1964 is an elector of Jowai Constituency and at present the Secy. of the Jaintia Durbar. The back - ground of the whole controversy is that by this notification the area of the Jowai Sub-Division has been taken out of the existing Autonomous District of United Khasi - Jaintia Hills District and constituted into a new autonomous district.

2. Art.244(2) of the Constitution provides that the provisions of the Sixth Schedule shall apply to the administration of the tribal areas in the State of Assam. This Article does not define the tribal areas in the State of Assam. It only provides that whatever is the tribal area in the State of Assam will be governed by the provisions of the Sixth Schedule. What are the tribal areas in the State of Assam are set out in Paragraph 20 of the Sixth Schedule. Paragraph 21 of the Sixth Schedule provides :
"21(1) Parliament may from time to time by law amend by way of addition, variation or repeal any of the provisions of this Schedule and, when the Schedule is so amended, any reference to this Schedule in this Constitution shall be construed as reference to such Schedule as so amended.
(2) No such law as is mentioned in sub-paragraph (1) of this paragraph shall be deemed to he an amendment of this Constitution for the purposes of Art.368."
Thus the purpose of selling out the extent of the tribal areas in the State of Assam in the Schedule and not in Art.244 of the Constitution is that if the tribal area is to be varied, it can be done simply by legislation of Parliament as it will only involve the amendment of the Schedule and recourse will not have to be taken to the provisions of Art.368 of the Constitution for the said purpose.

3. Mr. Lahiri who appears for the petitioners, contends firstly that the notification issued by the Governor of Assam amounts to amendment of Paragraph 20 of the Sixth Schedule, which could only be done by an Act of Parliament as provided for under Paragraph 21 of the said Schedule Secondly, he urges that even if the power of amending Paragraph 20 is assumed to have been given to the Governor under Paragraph 1(3), such a power has not been exercised by the Governor as will be evidenced from the language of the notification. Thirdly, it is contended that the power given under the Sixth Schedule paragraph 1(3)(c) only authorises the Governor to create a new autonomous district. If an autonomous district is created comprising of the area which was already part of an existing autonomous district, it cannot be said that it is a creation of a new autonomous district. In the present case as the new autonomous district of Jowai comprises of the area of the Jowai Subdivision, which was part of the existing autonomous district of Khasi and Jaintia Hills, it cannot be said that it