Kuldip Nayar, an eminent journalist had challenged two amendments in the Representation of Peoples Act, 1951 which came into force on 28.8.2003. Through the Amendment in Section 3, the requirement of ‘domicile’ in the state concerned for getting elected to the Council of State (Rajya Sabha) was deleted. This Amendment was challenged on the ground that it violates the principle of federalism, a basic structure of the Constitution. Through other Amendments in Sections 3, 59, 94 and 128 of the Act, open ballot system was introduced in Rajya Sabha elections which was challenged as being violative of right to secrecy, free and fair elections, as well as voter’s freedom of expression under Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution. Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court held that the impugned amendments did not infringe any Constitutional provision and thus the amendments were upheld.
