Judgment

BHARGAVA, J.: This writ petition and the appeal challenge the validity of the Hindi Sahitya Sammelan Act No. 13 of 1962 (hereinafter referred to as the Act"). The facts leading up to the passing of this enactment are that, in the year 1910, some eminent educationists assembled at Banaras and founded an Association for the development of Hindi and its propagation throughout the country. This Association was named as the Hindi Sahitya Sammelan. On the 8th January, 1914, it was registered as a Society under the Societies Registration Act No. 21 of 1860, with Head Office at Allahabad, under the name of Hindi Sahitya Sammelan. The rules and bye-laws of the Society laid down the objects of this Association and the manner of its working. It had three classes of members, viz, special members (Vishisht Sadasya), permanent members (Sthayi Sadasya) and ordinary members (Sadharan Sadasya). Under the bye-laws, apart from the original members constituting the Society, further members could be admitted under those three classifications on being elected by the working committee of the Society. Under the Rules and bye-laws of the Society, other bodies could be constituted far carrying on activities of the Society. These included a Governing Body, a Working Committee, a Hindi University Council, Literary Council (Sahitya Samiti), Library Committee, Parchar Samiti and Rashtriya Bhasha Prachar Samiti. Through the agencies of these various Committees, the Society carried on the work of development and propagation of Hindi, of spreading the use of Devnagri script, of holding examinations, and of conferring Degrees for proficiency in Hindi. The Society owned landed properties and buildings at Allahabad as well as at some other places such as Wardha, and was holing considerable funds for carrying on its activities. The Society worked very successfully for a number of years. It appears that in the year 1950, some differences arose between the members of the Society and attempt was made to alter the constitution of the Society. While one section wanted the alterations another section was opposed to It. This resulted in litigation. Three different suits were instituted in the civil courts at Allahabad in this connection and injunctions were sought by one party against the other. Ultimately, the Court appointed a Receiver.

2. In view of these circumstances, the U. P. Legislature passed an Act known as the U. P. Hindi Sahitya Sammelan Act No. 36 of 1956, under which a statutory body was created under the name of Hindi Sahitya Sammelan, and the word, " Sammelan" was defined as referring to the Hindi Sahitya Sammelan constituted under the Act. Under that Act, the management and properties of the original Hindi Sahitya Sammelan, which was a registered Society, were to be taken over by the new statutory Sammelan. That Act was, however, declared void by the Allahabad High Court on the ground that that Act had made the original Sammelan cease to exist and had provided for the constitution of a new Sammelan under its terms in which the members of the original Sammelan had no say, so that that Act infringed the right of the members of the original Sammelan of forming an association guaranteed by Art. 19 (l) (c) of the Constitution. It was further held that that Act was not saved under Art. 19 (4) of the Constitution. Thereafter, the present Act, now challenged in this writ petition and the appeal, was passed by Parliament under Entry 63 of List I of the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution. The Act itself, in Section 2, contained the necessary declaration to give legislative competence to Parliament under that Entry.

3. The Act first contained in Section 2 a declaration in the following words :

"Whereas the objects of the institution known as the Hindi Sahitya Sammelan which has its head office at Allahabad are such as to make the institution one of national importance. It is hereby declared that the institution known as the Hindi Sahitya Sammelan is an in