Centre & EC defend J&K delimitation process; affidavits filed in Supreme Court accessed

In a key development, the Centre and the Election Commission of India filed affidavits in the Supreme Court opposing the plea challenging the delimitation process in Jammu and Kashmir. An SC bench of Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and MM Sundresh had sought their response on the writ petition which sought the notifications pertaining to the formation of the Delimitation Commission to be declared 'unconstitutional'. The petitioners also urged the apex court to declare the increase in the number of Assembly seats in J&K from 83 to 90 is ultra vires the Constitution. 

The EC, in its affidavit, noted, "In respect of the subject matter of the instant writ petition, it is pertinent to mention that under Article 329(a) of the Constitution of India, there is a bar on judicial interference regarding the validity of any law relating to delimitation of constituencies". To buttress its point, the EC referred to SC judgments such as Meghraj Kothari vs Delimitation Commission & Anr., Assn. of Residents of Mhow vs Delimitation Commission of India and J&K National Panthers Party vs Union of India. However, it declined to provide any opinion on the notifications on the constitution of the Delimitation Commission.

On the other hand, the Centre contended that the plea was nothing but a frivolous attempt to challenge the orders of the Delimitation Commission. Seeking dismissal of the plea, it observed, "It is most important to note that the Delimitation Commission was set up two years before the instant writ petition was instituted. The Delimitation Commission has since, completed its exercise and its subsequent orders have also been issued via the Gazette of India. The petitioners have failed to justify the delay in raising the alleged concerns earlier by way of the instant petition". 

The affidavit added, "As per section 60 of the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Act, the number of seats in the Legislative Assembly of the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir shall be increased from 107 to 114 which includes 24 seats in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir. Further, a special provision as Section 62 has been incorporated in the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization Act, 2019 with regard to the readjustment of Parliamentary and Assembly constituencies of Jammu and Kashmir on the basis of 2011 census. Hence, the contention of the petitioner that the increase in number of Assembly seats is unconstitutional is denied."

Delimitation in J&K

Referring to the demarcation of boundaries of Parliamentary or Assembly constituencies, the delimitation process is carried out at regular intervals to ensure that each constituency has approximately an equal number of voters. It is usually done when a state is divided, which is the case with J&K, which was split into the Union Territories of J&K and Ladakh. Elections have not been held in the state since the dissolution of the state Assembly on 21 November 2018. According to the government notification dated 6 March 2020, retired Supreme Court judge Ranjana Desai was appointed as the head of the Delimitation Commission.

As per the final delimitation order, the names of more than nine Assembly constituencies have been changed in view of the public sentiment. While J&K will continue to have only five Lok Sabha seats, a new parliamentary constituency - Anantnag-Rajouri - has been carved out by combining the Anantnag region in the Kashmir Valley and Rajouri and Poonch in Jammu. Each parliamentary constituency will have 18 Assembly segments.