- (1.) We have heard Ms. Indira Jai Singh, Senior Advocate, assisted by Mr. Aditya Shrivastava, Ms. Bindu N. Doddahat & Mr. Satish Kumar for the petitioners in DBCWP No.375/2015-Dulari Devi & Ors. Vs. State of Rajasthan & Ors. and DBCWP No.376/2015- Norati & Anr. Vs. State of Rajasthan & Ors.; Mr. Rajendra Soni in DBCWP No.1/2015, Mr. Pradeep Kalwania in DBCWP No.209/2015; Shri S.S. Hora in DBCWP Nos.503/2015 & 504/2015; Mr. Vijay Choudhary in DBCWP No.251/2015, Mr. Hanuman Choudhary in DBCWP No.250/2015, Mr. Manoj Bhardwaj in DBCWP Nos.121/2015 & 122/2015, and Mr. Bharat Yadav for the petitioners. Mr. Narpal Mal Lodha, learned Advocate General, assisted by Mr. Vishal Soni, Mr. Sheetanshu Sharma, Mr. Rajendra Prasad, Additional Advocate General, Mr. Anurag Sharma, Additional Advocate General and Mr. R.B. Mathur, appear for the State of Rajasthan and other respondents.
(2.) By these writ petitions, the petitioners have prayed for an appropriate writ, order or direction, to hold and declare the Ordinance No.2/2014, promulgated by the Hon'ble Governor of the State of Rajasthan, dated 20.12.2014, amending Section 19 of the Rajasthan Panchayati Raj Act, 1994 (for short, 'the Act of 1994'), inserting clauses (r), (s) and (t), and adding Explanation-III for the purposes of newly inserted clauses (s) and (t), providing for educational qualifications for the members of a Zila Parishad or a Panchayat Samiti, Sarpanch of a Panchayat in a Scheduled Area and Sarpanch of a Panchayat other than in a Scheduled Area for contesting the elections for Panchayati Raj Institutions in the State of Rajasthan, for which the State Election Commission has issued an election programme on 24.12.2014. The Ordinance No.2/2014 has amended Section 19, providing that every person registered as a voter in the list of voters of a Panchayati Raj Institution, shall be qualified for election as a Panch, or as the case may, a member of such Panchayati Raj Institution, unless such person, in case of a member of a Zila Parishad or a Panchayat Samiti, has passed the Secondary School Examination of the Board of Secondary Education Rajasthan, or of any equivalent Board, under newly inserted clause (r), and in case of a Sarpanch of a Panchayat in a Scheduled Area, has passed class V from a school under clause (s), and in case of a Sarpanch of a Panchayat other than in a Scheduled Area, has passed class VIII from a school under clause (t). These qualifications have been added, to be considered as disqualification, if the candidates do not possess such minimum educational qualification, apart from disqualification prescribed in clauses (a) to (p), to contest the elections.
(3.) The prescription of education qualifications for contesting elections for the Panchayati Raj Institutions have been challenged on the ground that there was no such circumstance existing, which had rendered it necessary for the Governor to take an immediate action to promulgate an Ordinance, amending the Act of 1994, just four days before the election programme was declared. The State of Rajasthan has not acted in a bonafide manner in taking a decision for advising the Hon'ble Governor, to issue the Ordinance. The State of Rajasthan has acted in colourable exercise of powers with an oblique purpose to disqualify and to exclude a large section of population living in rural areas from the election process. The Ordinance is not a product of any debate and discussion.;