| Whereas it is the general
desire of tile people of the State of Jammu and Kashmir that a Constituent
Assembly should be brought into being for the purpose of framing a Constitution
for the State;
Whereas it is commonly felt that
the convening of the Assembly can no longer be delayed without detriment
to the future well-being of the State;
And whereas terms of the proclamation
of the Mal1araja dated 5 March, 1948 in regard to the convening of a n
Tonal assembly as contained hi clauses 4 to 6 of the operative part thereof
do not meet the requirements of the present situation;
I, Yuvraj Karan Singh, do hereby
direct as follows:
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A Constituent Assembly consisting of
representatives of the people, elected on the basis of adult franchise
shall be constituted forthwith for the purpose of framing a constitution
for the State of Jammu and Kashmir;
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For the purpose of the said elections
the State shall be divided into a number of territorial constituencies
each containing a population of 40,000 or as near thereto as possible and
each electing one member. A delimitation Committee shall be set up by the
Government to make recommendations as to the number of constituencies and
the limits of each constituency;
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Elections to the Constituent Assembly
shall be on the basis of adult franchise, that is to say, every person
who is a State subject of any class, is not less than twenty-one years
of age on tile first day of March, has been a resident in the constituency
for such period as may be prescribed by the rules, shall be entitled to
register in the electoral rolls of that constituency, provided that any
person who is of unsound mind or has been so declared by a competent court,
shall be disqualified for registration;
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The vote at the election shall tee direct
and by secret ballot;
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The Constituent Assembly shall have
power to act notwithstanding any vacancy of the Membership thereof;
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The Constituent Assembly shall frame
its own agenda and make rules for the governing of its procedure and the
conduct of its business;
The Government shall make such rules
and issue such instructions and orders as may be necessary to give effect
to the terms of this proclamation. |