according to law under which it has been held to be valid. This is illustrated
by saying that Parliament can by law declare the election of persons against
the predominant ruling party to be void. If the majority party controls the
legislature and the executive, the legislature could not have any say as to
whether the executive was properly elected. Free and fair elections an part of
democratic structure and an election which has been held to be invalid for
violation of the principles of free and fair elections and by commission of
corrupt practice is validated. The basic structure of equally is violated by
providing that those who has office of Prime Minister and Speaker and above
law although election laws were there. The persons who will hold the office of
Prime Minister and Speaker have been free from those laws and they are not
under rule of law and there is no judicial review with regard to their
elections.
23. The nature of the constitution power is legislative. The constituent
power cannot exercise judicial power Exercise of judicial power or of a purely
executive power is not power of amendment of the Constitution. The
Constitution may be amended to change constitutional provisions but the
constituent power cannot enact that a person is declared to be elected. The
consequence of change of law may be that the decision given by a court under
the law as it stood will not stand.
24. The respondent contends that judicial review is an essential feature of
basic structure because of the doctrine of separation of powers for these
reasons : Judicial review is basic structure in the matter of election to ensure
free, fair and pure election. In the American and the Australian Constitutions
the judicial power of the State is located in the judiciary. There is no such
provision in our Constitution. The Executive, the Legislature and the
Judiciary are all treated under our Constitution with respective spheres. The
jurisdiction of this Court and of High Courts under our Constitution is dealt
with by Articles under the Heads of the Union Judiciary and the State
Judiciary. Under Article 136 any Tribunal or Court is amenable to the
jurisdiction of this Court. The corollary drawn from this is that if under
clause (4) of the Thirty-ninth Amendment the power of judicial review is
taken away it amounts to destruction of basic structure.
25. In England formerly Parliament used to hear election disputes. In
1870 Parliament found that because of political factions it would be better to
leave the task of deciding controverted elections to Judges. Parliament
delegated its power of deciding controverted elections to Courts. Under the
English Law the Courts hear and make a report to Parliament. In America
each House shall be the judge of the election, returns and qualifications of its
own Members. That is Article 1 Section 5 of the American Constitution. In
Australia any question of a disputed election to either House shall be
determined by the house in which the question arises. Under the German
Federal Republic Constitution the legislature decides whether a person has
lost his seat. Against the decision of the Bundestag an appeal shall lie to
Federal Constitution Court.