election petitions and matters connected therewith shall apply or shall be
deemed ever to have applied to or in relation to the election of any such
person as is referred to in clause (1) to either House of Parliament;
(ii) and such election shall not be deemed to be void or ever to have
become void on any ground on which such election could be declared to be
void or has before such commencement been declared to be void under any
such law;
(iii) and notwithstanding any order made by any court before such
commencement declaring such election to be void, such election shall
continue to be valid in all respects;
(iv) and any such order and any finding on which such order is based shall
be and shall be deemed always to have been void and of no effect.
186. In so far as part (i) is concerned, I find that it ralates to a matter
which can be the subject of an ordinary legislation or a constitutional
amendment. According to this part, no law made by Parliament before the
commencement of the Constitution (39th Amendment) Act, 1975 in so far as
it relates to the election petitions and matters connected therewith shall
apply and shall be deemed ever to have applied to or in relation to the
election of any such person as is referred to in clause (1) to either House of
Parliament. A law in the above terms can validly be made by a legislature as
well as by a constituent authority. The fact that the above law would have
retrospective effect would not detract from the competence of the legislature
or constituent authority to make such a law. It is well-settled that it is
permissible for a legislature to make a law with retrospective effect. The
power of legislature to make a law with retrospective effect is not curtailed
or circumscribed by the fact that the subject matter of such retrospective law
is a matter relating to an election dispute (see State of Orissa v. Bhupendra
Kumar Bose, (1962) Supp 2 SCR 380 = (AIR 1962 SC 945) and Kanta
Kathuria v. Manak Chand Surana, (1970) 2 SCR 835 = (AIR 1970 SC 694).
Detailed reference to these cases would be made at the appropriate stage
subsequently. If a legislature can pass legislation in respect of matters
relating to an election dispute with a retrospective effect, the constituent
authority, which is a kind of superlegislature, would a fortiori be entitled to
do so.
187. Part (ii) of clause (4) spells out the consequence which flows from
part (i) of the clause. If the previous law in so far as it relates to the election
petitions and matters connected therewith was not to apply to the election of
the Prime Minister and the Speaker, it would necessarily follow that the
election of the appellant who was the Prime Minister would not be deemed to
be void or ever to have become void on the ground on which such election
could be declared to be void or has before such commencement been declared
to be void under any such law.
188. The same, to some extent, appears to be true of part (iv) of cl. (4). If
the previous law in so far as it relates to the election petitions and matters
connected therewith was not to apply to the election of the appellant, the
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