JUDGMENT : A Muhamed Mustaque, J. 1. These writ petitions raise a question on the legality of the consecutive or successive reservation for the office of Chairpersons and Presidents in the local bodies in the forthcoming general election. 2. The State Election Commission issued a notification on 3/3/2020 reserving the post of Chairpersons and Presidents of local authorities for SC/ST and women. The general election to the local authorities was announced on 6/11/2020 and notified by the Election Commission on 12/11/2020. The election has to be completed in different phases. The declaration of election is scheduled on 16/12/2020. The challenge made in all these writ petitions is that consecutive or successive reservation of office of Chairperson of the local body without following rotation is violative of Article 243-D(4) read with Article 14 of the Constitution of India. 3. There is no dispute to the fact that the Election Commission was constrained to reserve the post of Chairpersons consecutively on account of implementation of the statutory provisions under the Kerala Panchayat Raj Act, 1994 and the Kerala Municipality Act, 1994. The implementation of the statutory provisions necessarily would result in a consecutive reservation for the reason that the statutory provisions contemplate combined reservation for SC/ST and women beyond 50%. However, in the Constitution, the reservation was contemplated for not less than 30%. 4. This Court in these writ petitions is called upon to carry out an exercise under the statutory provisions within the constitutional mandate of providing reservation of not less than one third to SC/ST and women. It is apposite to refer Article 243-D of the Constitution which reads thus: 243-D. Reservation of seats: 243-D. (1) Seats shall be reserved for— (a) the Scheduled Castes; and (b) the Scheduled Tribes, in every Panchayat and the number of seats so reserved shall bear, as nearly as may be, the same proportion to the total number of seats to be filled by direct election in that Panchayat as the population of the Scheduled Castes in that Panchayat area or of the Scheduled Tribes in that Panchayat area bears to the total population of that area and such seats may be allotted by rotation to different constituencies in a Panchayat. (2) Not less than one-third of the total number of seats reserved under clause (1) shall be reserved for women belonging to the Scheduled Castes or, as the case may be, the Scheduled Tribes. (3) Not less than one-third (including the number of seats reserved for women belonging to the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes) of the total number of seats to be filled by direct election in every Panchayat shall be reserved for women and such seats may be allotted by rotation to different constituencies in a Panchayat. (4) The offices of the Chairpersons in the Panchayats at the village or any other level shall be reserved for the Scheduled Castes, the Scheduled Tribes and women in such manner as the Legislature of a State may, by law, provide: Provided that the number of offices of Chairpersons reserved for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes in the Panchayats at each level in any State shall bear, as nearly as may be, the same proportion to the total number of such offices in the Panchayats at each level as the population of the Scheduled Castes in the State or of the Scheduled Tribes in the State bears to the total population of the State: Provided further that not less than one third of the total number of offices of Chairpersons in the Panchayats at each level shall be reserved for women: Provided also that the number of offices reserved under this clause shall be allotted by rotation to different Panchayats at each level. (5) The reservation of seats under clauses (1) and (2) and the reservation of offices of Chairpersons (other than the reservation for women) under clause (4) shall cease to have effect on the expiration of the period specified in article 334. (6) Nothing in this Part shall prevent the Legislature of a State from making any provision for reservation of seats in any Panchayat or offices of Chairpersons in the Panchayats at any level in favour of backward class of citizens. 5. It is also appropriate to refer the relevant portion of Section 153 of the Panchayat Raj Act, which reads thus: 153. 5. It is also appropriate to refer the relevant portion of Section 153 of the Panchayat Raj Act, which reads thus: 153. Election of President and Vice-President.- (1) In every Panchayat there shall be a President and a Vice-President elected from among the elected members of that Panchayat in accordance with the provisions of this Act and the president shall be Full-time functionary of the Panchayat. (2) On the constitution of a panchayat or on its reconstitution under any provision of this Act, there shall be called a meeting by the Returning Officer referred to in sub-section (6) for the election of its President and Vice-President from among the elected members of that Panchayat. (3) (a) The offices of President of Village Panchayats, Block Panchayats and District Panchayats in the State shall be reserved by the Government for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes and the number of the offices of President reserved for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in the panchayats at each level in the state shall bear, as nearly as may be, the same proportion to the total number of offices of President at each level as the population of the Scheduled Castes in the State or of the Scheduled Tribes in the State bears to the total population of the State; (b) (i) Fifty percent (in the case of fraction it shall be fixed to the next higher integer) each of the total number of offices of President of village panchayats, Block Panchayats and District Panchayats in the State reserved under clause (a); and (ii) Fifty percent (in the case of a fraction it shall be fixed to the next higher integer) each of the total number of offices of President of village Panchayats, Block Panchayats and District Panchayats in the State, not so reserved, shall be reserved by the Government, for women. (4)(a).- The offices of the President reserved under sub-section (3) shall be allotted to every level of the Panchayat in the different districts by the State Election Commission by notification in the Gazette. (b) In the case of Block Panchayats and Village Panchayats the reserved seats for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes shall be allotted proportionate to their population in the respective districts. (b) In the case of Block Panchayats and Village Panchayats the reserved seats for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes shall be allotted proportionate to their population in the respective districts. (c) In the case of Village Panchayat, the reserved seats in each district shall be distributed among the Village Panchayats within the area of the various Block Panchayats in the district. (d) Before issuing notification for General election, the State Election Commission shall allot by rotation the reserved seats under clause (a), (b) and (c) and the rotation shall start from the Panchayat in which the Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes or women have the largest percentage of population and then passed on to the next panchayat having their largest percentage of population and so on : (e) In the case of an election to the office of the President reserved for Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes, a member, if he is not a person elected from a seat reserved for Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes as the case may be, shall not be eligible for election to the office of the President, unless he produces before the Retiring Officer a community certificate issued by a competent officer stating that he is a member of the Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe; (f) A member elected to the office of the President reserved for Scheduled Castes or Scheduled Tribes who has been proved under the Kerala (Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes) Regulation of Issue of Community Certificates Act, 1996 (11of 1996) or under any other law for the time being in force, that he does not belong to Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe, as the case may be, and declared as such he shall not be entitled to continue in office of the President from the date of such declaration and his membership shall stand forfeited and the State Election Commission shall declare the offices of the President and the member to be vacant. Provided that where the Panchayat the office of President of which is to be reserved for women and the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes is one and the same; in so reserving the Office of President, preference shall be given to the Scheduled Castes or the Scheduled Tribes and in lieu, the office of the President in the Panchayat not having their largest percentage population of women shall be reserved for women: Provided further that in Panchayats the office of President of which is reserved for the Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribes, those in which the women have the more percentage of population of women shall be reserved for women belonging to them: Provided also that the office of President of any panchayat shall be reserved for the Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribes or women belonging to them only if at least one constituency of that Panchayat is reserved for that category. 6. In the Kerala Municipality Act, under Section 10, 'reservation' is provided as follows: 10. Mayor or Chairman of a Municipality.— (1) There shall be a Chairman in every Town Panchayat and Municipal Council and a Mayor in every Municipal Corporation who shall be elected by the elected Councillors of the respective Municipalities from among themselves, in such manner as may be prescribed. The Chairperson shall be a full-time functionary of the Municipality. (2) Such number of the offices of Chairmen of Town Panchayats, Chairmen of Municipal Councils and Mayor of Municipal Corporations shall be reserved for the Scheduled Castes or, as the case may be, the Scheduled Tribes by the Government and the offices of the Chairmen of the Town Panchayats, Chairmen of the Municipal Councils and Mayor of the Municipal Corporations so reserved may be allotted by rotation to different Town Panchayats, Municipal Councils or, as the case may be, the Municipal Corporations as the State Election Commission may, by notification in the Gazette, determine for each general election. (3) The total number of offices of Chairmen in the Town Panchayats, Chairmen in the Municipal Councils or Mayor of the Municipal Corporations, as the case may be, to be reserved for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes under sub-section(2) shall bear as nearly as may be, the same proportion to the total number of offices of Chairmen in the Town Panchayats, Chairmen of the Municipal Councils or Mayor of the Municipal Corporations, as the case may be, as the population of the Scheduled Casts or as the case may be, the Scheduled Tribes, in the Municipalities in the State bear to the total population of the Municipalities. (4) Fifty percent(in the case of fraction, it shall be fixed to the next higher intefer) of the offices of the Chairpersons in the Town Panchayats, Municipal Councils and Municipal Corporations reserved under sub-section (2), shall be set apart by Government for women belonging to Scheduled Castes, or as the case may be, Scheduled Tribes and for each general election the seats so reserved shall be allotted by the State Election Commission, by notifications in the Gazette, to different Town Panchayats or Municipal Councils or Municipal Corporations, as the case may be, by rotation: Provided that where the number of offices of Chairpersons reserved for the Scheduled Castes or as the case may be, the Scheduled Tribes under sub-section (2) is one, that seat need not be reserved for women belonging to the Scheduled Castes or as the case may be, the Scheduled Tribes. (5) Fifty percent (in the case of Fraction, it shall be fixed to the next higher integer) of the total number of offices of the Chairpersons in the Town Panchayats, Municipal Councils and Municipal Corporations, shall be reserved for women by the Government and the seats so reserved shall be allotted by the State Election Commission including those reserved under sub-section (4), by rotation to different Town Panchayats, Municipal Councils and Municipal Corporations, as the case may be. 7. As seen from Section 153(4)(d), the Election Commission have to allot rotation of the reserved seats before issuance of the notification for the general election. 8. If the statutory provisions are as such adhered to as noted above, it would result in reservation beyond 50%. 7. As seen from Section 153(4)(d), the Election Commission have to allot rotation of the reserved seats before issuance of the notification for the general election. 8. If the statutory provisions are as such adhered to as noted above, it would result in reservation beyond 50%. When this Court put a query to the learned Standing Counsel, Shri Murali Purushothaman appearing for the Election Commission as to the percentage of reservation, he gave a rough estimation of the percentage of reservation for the coming election as around 67%. This has resulted in filing these writ petitions stating that reservation is without following the rotation as envisaged under the third proviso to Article 243-D(4). 9. As seen from Article 243-D, rotation of reservation to the different local authorities in the State is not a difficult task. The prescription of 'reservation' under the Constitution is not less than one-third of the total number of offices of the Chairpersons for women. As far as the Chairpersons reserved for SC/ST under the Constitution, the reserved seats shall bear the same proportion to the total number of such offices in the Panchayats at each level as the population of the Scheduled Caste or the Scheduled Tribes in the State bears to the population of the State. 10. However, under the Kerala Panchayat Raj Act and the Kerala Municipality Act, different yardsticks have been provided for reservation of office. As far as women, the prescription is 50% for the offices of the local authorities. Similarly, 50% based on the representation of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes as referred under Section 153(3)(a) of the Kerala Panchayat Raj Act. That makes the total reservation beyond 50% to the offices of Chairpersons, President etc. 11. If the statutory provisions are as such adhered to, that will render the third proviso to Article 243-D(4) as inoperative. This is exactly that happened in all these cases. By adhering to the statutory provisions and making the reservation beyond 50% resulted in a successive reservation. 12. Therefore, this Court has to balance the statutory provisions on one hand and the constitutional provision, on the other hand. The statutory provisions, if read in the light of constitutional directives, it has to be understood that 50% of reservation as referred in Section 153(3)(b)(i) and b(ii) and in Municipality Act is the maximum. What is prescribed in the Constitution is the minimum. The statutory provisions, if read in the light of constitutional directives, it has to be understood that 50% of reservation as referred in Section 153(3)(b)(i) and b(ii) and in Municipality Act is the maximum. What is prescribed in the Constitution is the minimum. Therefore reservation cannot go below the prescription under the Constitution and also cannot exceed the maximum provided under the statutory provisions as above. However, nothing prevents the Election Commission to reduce the number of the reservation to the offices of the Presidents or Chairpersons to ensure compliance of constitutional directives of rotation. That reduction cannot be less than the minimum as contemplated under Article 243-D. Therefore, the Election Commission has to ensure compliance to the constitutional directives, to bring down the percentage of reservation in such a manner to ensure rotation as referred to in the third proviso to Article 243-D(4). The Legislature was aware of the constitutional directives as above while incorporating 50% of reservation for the offices of the President or Chairpersons under Section 153 of the Kerala Panchayat Raj Act. The Court has to adopt an approach to avoid redundancy of constitutional provisions. Therefore, the only possible way for understanding the fixation of percentage of reservation to the offices of the Presidents and Chairpersons for SC/ST and women is not by negating the percentage of 50% as fixed in the Statute but interpreting the 50% fixed as above is as maximum. The Election Commission has necessary power to reduce but not to below the prescription under the Constitution, to ensure the compliance of the rotation. If not done, the exercise of choosing the Presidents or Chairpersons would militate against the constitutional directives. Further, the Constitution never contemplated reservation tied with the local authorities in perpetuity. 13. In the light of the discussions above, I am of the view that successive reservation to the offices of the Chairpersons and President overlooking the constitutional directives is illegal and unsustainable. It is also arbitrary as it would deny aspirations of the candidates of non-reserved categories to occupy the offices of the Presidents or Chairpersons. By insisting on following the rotation, the Constitution intends to avoid reverse discrimination. Thus, the failure to follow rotation would deny equality of opportunity. Though one has no fundamental right to the offices of the Presidents or Chairpersons that will not render a discriminatory decision as to legal and valid. By insisting on following the rotation, the Constitution intends to avoid reverse discrimination. Thus, the failure to follow rotation would deny equality of opportunity. Though one has no fundamental right to the offices of the Presidents or Chairpersons that will not render a discriminatory decision as to legal and valid. Thus, the petitioners have made out a case for interference. 14. The learned Standing Counsel for the Election Commission raised the following objections: Objection No.i.: 14.i. According to the learned Standing Counsel, the writ petitions are not maintainable under Article 243-O as the Election Commission has already issued the election notification. This Court shall examine the objections of the learned Standing Counsel under Article 243-O. Article 243-O bars interference by Courts in electoral matters. Article 243-O, in my opinion, does not attract in this matter. The electoral matters mean the process upto the declaration of the results. The notification issued for reservation of Presidents or Chairpersons does not form part of a notification issued for the election. A notification issued for reservation of the Presidents and Chairpersons is distinct and different from a notification issued for the election. Section 153(4)(d) of the Kerala Panchayat Raj Act refers to issuing a notification of reservation before issuing a notification for the general election. That clearly makes a case that the notification of election is distinct and different. Merely because a notification has to be issued prior to the election, that does not mean that this Court cannot interfere with such notification during the process of the general election. There is no legal bar under the law for a Court interfering with such matters. The Apex Court in Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) v. Secretary, Governor's Secretariat and others (2020) 6 SCC 548 and Election Commission of India v. Ashok Kumar and Others (2000) 8 SCC 216 have taken the view that the Court can interfere with matters related to the election if such intervention has no effect of interruption or obstruction to the election proceedings. Thus Court can very well interfere in exceptional cases if the Court is of the view that interference will not have an effect on the on-going election process. 14.ii. The election of Chairpersons will take place only after the declaration of the result. It will in no way affect the on-going election proceedings. Thus Court can very well interfere in exceptional cases if the Court is of the view that interference will not have an effect on the on-going election process. 14.ii. The election of Chairpersons will take place only after the declaration of the result. It will in no way affect the on-going election proceedings. On the other hand, if any direction given now would only further the objectives of the constitutional directives of rotation. 14.iii. The learned Standing Counsel placed reliance on the judgment of the Karnataka High Court in Latha and Others v. State of Karnataka and Others and argued that the Karnataka High Court in similar circumstances, declined jurisdiction. This Court is of the view that it was a challenge changing the reservation and not a challenge based on successive reservation. The challenge made therein appears to be made against the basis of reservation of the Scheduled Tribe category. In fact, such a challenge would have an impact upon the seat reserved for such category. In such circumstances, the Karnataka High Court rightly declined jurisdiction. Here, in this case, the challenge is exclusively against the offices of the Presidents and Chairpersons and, therefore, Article 243-O will not apply. Objection No.2: 14.iv. The learned Standing Counsel submits that if any change is effected, that would affect the seating arrangements made by different parties and, without notice to all affected persons, this Court cannot interfere with such matters. It is to be noted that no one has any fundamental right to a post nor, has any statutory right to the offices of the Presidents or Chairpersons before the election. The mere expectation of a contestant in an election will not confer him a legal right to claim for the office. The right to the office is created by Constitution and statute and, therefore, it can be claimed only in accordance with law as laid in Constitution and statute. Therefore expectation of contestants to aspire for the office cannot be characterised having an element of legal interest to classify them as 'aggrieved persons'. A further claim of aspirants is under public law and not under private law. The sphere of public law cannot be decided by private aspirations of an individual. At the best private individual can only demand conduct of the election in accordance with the law. A further claim of aspirants is under public law and not under private law. The sphere of public law cannot be decided by private aspirations of an individual. At the best private individual can only demand conduct of the election in accordance with the law. The second objection of the learned Standing Counsel is also untenable and, accordingly, it is overruled. 15. This Court has to interfere with the decision of the Election Commission, successively reserving the post of Presidents and Chairpersons to the offices of the local authorities to ensure that the elections to the said office is made in accordance with the constitutional mandate and directives. The writ petitions are, therefore, allowed. The Election Commission is directed to recast the reservation of the office of the Presidents and Chairpersons of the local bodies in the State pursuant to the notification dated 3/11/2020, strictly complying with the constitutional directives under the third proviso to Article 243-D(4), following the principles of rotation. Any exercise so to be made shall not result in the reduction of reservation of offices as prescribed in the Constitution.