Case Note & Summary
The batch of writ petitions came before the High Court of Karnataka at Bengaluru on 27th November 2015, presided over by Justice Raghvendra S. Chauhan. The petitioners, comprising individuals such as Smt. Pramila M. and others, challenged the constitutionality of Section 7 of the Karnataka Municipal Corporations Act, 1976, specifically the provision that permits Members of the House of the People, Members of Legislative Assembly, Members of Legislative Council, and Members of the Council of States to vote in meetings convened for the election of the Mayor, Deputy Mayor, and other office bearers of the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP). According to the petitioners, this provision violates Article 243R(b) of the Constitution of India, which, they argued, envisages that only directly elected councillors should have voting rights in such elections. Additionally, some petitions sought to strike down Article 243R and the 73rd Constitutional Amendment as being violative of the basic structure doctrine as propounded in Kesavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala. A separate petition filed by Sri M. Venkatesh and another sought a writ of quo-warranto against two MLCs (Respondent Nos. 8 and 9) on the ground that they were registered as voters in more than one constituency, thereby contravening Section 17 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950; the petitioners prayed for deletion of these names from the BBMP electoral roll before the ensuing elections for Mayor and Standing Committees scheduled on 11.09.2015. The State of Karnataka, BBMP, Regional Commissioner, Union of India, and the concerned elected representatives were arrayed as respondents. Various senior advocates appeared for the parties. The court, by interlocutory orders dated 29.09.2015 and 09.10.2015, allowed amendments and impleadments. The text of the judgment provided, however, contains only the details of the petitions and prayers, and does not record any final adjudication, reasoning, or operative directions.
Issue of Consideration
Case Details
2015 LawText (KAR) (11) 26
WP Nos. 37111-37115/2015 c/w WP Nos. 38001-38002/2015, 38074/2015, 37949-37951/2015, 38522-23/2015, 40453/2015, 39123/2015 and 42084/2015 (LB-ELE)
Sri Ashok Haranahalli, Sri R. Subramanya, Sri K.G. Raghavan, Sri Tejaswi Surya, Prof. Ravivarma Kumar, Sri D. Ashwathappa, Sri S. Vijay Shankar, Sri K.N. Puttegowda, Sri Udaya Holla, Sri D. Srinivas Murthy, Sri Krishna Dixit
State of Karnataka & Others
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Nature of Litigation
Writ petitions under Article 226 challenging the constitutional validity of Section 7 of the Karnataka Municipal Corporations Act, 1976, and seeking related reliefs including writs of declaration and quo-warranto.
Remedy Sought
Declaration that Section 7 of the Karnataka Municipal Corporations Act, 1976 is unconstitutional insofar as it allows Members of Parliament, MLAs, MLCs and members of Council of States to vote in elections for Mayor, Deputy Mayor and Standing Committees; declaration that Article 243R and 73rd Amendment are violative of basic structure; writ of quo-warranto against two MLCs and deletion of their names from BBMP electoral roll for violating Section 17 of RP Act, 1950.
Filing Reason
Petitioners contend that the impugned provision violates Article 243R(b) of the Constitution and undermines the democratic principle by allowing non-directly elected representatives to vote in municipal elections.
Issues
Whether Section 7 of the Karnataka Municipal Corporations Act, 1976, insofar as it enables Members of Parliament, MLAs, MLCs and members of Council of States to vote in elections for Mayor, Deputy Mayor and Standing Committees, is unconstitutional and violative of Article 243R(b) of the Constitution of India.
Whether Article 243R and the 73rd Amendment of the Constitution are violative of the basic structure doctrine.
Whether Respondent Nos. 8 and 9 (MLCs) should be removed from the list of voters for BBMP elections for being registered as voters in more than one constituency in violation of Section 17 of the Representation of the People Act, 1950.
Procedural History
The writ petitions were filed and clubbed together. On 29.09.2015, IA No.4/2015 for amendment was allowed. On 09.10.2015, IA No.1/2015 for impleadment of additional respondents was allowed. The matters were listed together for hearing but no final adjudication is recorded in the provided text.
Acts & Sections
- Constitution of India: Article 243R(b), Article 243R, 73rd Amendment
- Karnataka Municipal Corporations Act, 1976: Section 7
- Representation of the People Act, 1950: Section 17
