B.R.SARANGI,J. - (1.) Part-IX has been added to the Constitution consisting of Articles 243 to 243-O and a new Schedule, viz., Eleventh Schedule has also been added by the Constitution (Seventy-third Amendment) Act, 1992 with effect from 24.04.1993. The amendment is intended to give effect to Article 40 of the Directive Principles of State Policy. Article 40 directs the State to take steps to organize Village Panchayats and vest them with such powers and authority and may be necessary to enable them to function as units to self-Government. The object of Part IX was to introduce the panchayat system at grass root level. As panchayat systems were based on State Legislation, and their functioning was unsatisfactory, the amendment to the Constitution sought to strengthen the panchayat system by giving a uniform Constitutional base, so that the panchayats became vibrant unit of administration in rural area by establishing strong, effective and democratic local administration, so that there can be rapid implementation of rural development programmes. A uniform three-tier system of Panchayats, i.e., at village, intermediate and district level, has been created throughout the country. Their term is fixed for five years and new elections are to be held before the period expires. There is reservation for scheduled castes/scheduled tribes and women for the post of members, as well as chairperson. It is also provided that all the reserved seats are to be allotted by rotation of different constituents in a Panchayat. The aim of rotation may be to draw into political process, members of vulnerable groups in all areas. The State Government is empowered to confer upon Panchayat institution the right to implement schemes relating to twenty-six subjects inserted in the Eleventh Schedule.
(2.) To achieve those avowed objectives, after completion of five years tenure, the Government of Odisha in Panchayati Raj Department vide notification issued under sub-rule (2) of Rule 3 of the Odisha Zilla Parishad Election Rules, 1994 published in Official Gazette on 23.12.2016, called upon all the Parishad Constituencies in the State to elect their Members for the purpose of constituting the Zilla Parishads. Consequentially, in exercise of power conferred under Article 243-K of the Constitution of India and sub-rule (1) of Rule 4 read with Rules 20, 36 and 47 of the aforesaid Rules, the State Election Commission, by the notification dated 27.12.2016, appointed the date and time with respect to conduct of election. From the date of notification, i.e. 27.12.2016, the election process was to continue till the date of publication of names of duly elected Vice-President by the Commission i.e., 27.03.2017. As such, the model code of conduct issued by the Commission would remain in force from the date of issuance of notification till the final publication of the results. During continuation of the election process, a notification was issued on 08.03.2017 by the State Government, in exercise of power conferred by Section-51 of the Odisha Zilla Parishad Act, 1991 (Odisha Act 17 of 1991) amending the Odisha Zilla Parishad Election Rules, 1994 by inserting Rule 51A after the Rule 51 of the existing Rules, which is the subject-matter of challenge in this application. Rule 51A of Odisha Zilla Parishad Election (Amendment) Rules, 2017 is extracted hereunder: "51A. (1) Every political party, whose member as an elector casts a vote for the purpose of election to the office of the President, or as the case may be, the Vice-President, may appoint one authorised agent and the President or the General Secretary of the State Level Political Party/State unit of the National Political Party shall, in writing, inform the same to the Election Officer with full details of the authorised agent proposed to be so engaged for the said election prior to the scheduled date of election. (2) Notwithstanding anything contained in Rules 50 and 51, the Election Officer shall, between the period, when an elector being a member of a political party records his vote on a ballot paper and before such elector inserts that ballot paper into the ballot box, allow the authorised agent of that political party to verify as to whom such elector has cast his vote."
(3.) The petitioner is a Social activist and is an active member of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). He has been elected as Zilla Parishad Member of Sundargarh District as a candidate of BJP. The petitioner is affected and prejudiced by the Odisha Zilla Parishad Election (Amendment) Rules, 2017 notified on 08.03.2017, when the Zilla Parishad Election for the posts of President and Vice-President was fixed to 12.03.2017 and 24.03.2017 respectively. takeover;