Supreme Court of India
Thiru K.N. Rajgopal vs Thiru M. Karunanidhi & Ors on 17 March, 1971
Equivalent citations: AIR 1971 SUPREME COURT 1551, 1972 4 SCC 733 1971 U J (SC) 499, 1971 U J (SC) 499
Bench: G.K. Mitter, K.S. Hegde, A.N Grover, P.J. Reddy
CASE NO.: Appeal (civil) 186 of 1971 PETITIONER: THIRU K.N. RAJGOPAL RESPONDENT: THIRU M. KARUNANIDHI & ORS. DATE OF JUDGMENT: 17/03/1971 BENCH: S.M. SIKRI (CJ) & G.K. MITTER & K.S. HEGDE & A.N GROVER & P.J. REDDY JUDGMENT:
JUDGMENT 1971 AIR 1551 = 1972 (4) SCR 733 The Judgment was delivered by SIKRI, C.J. :
SIKRI, C.J. for the We have just delivered judgment in U. N. R. Rao v. Smt. Indira Gandhi ( 1971 (2) SCC 63 ). A similar question arises in this appeal, but with respect to the Chief Minister and the Ministers of the State of Tamil Nadu. The relevant articles are worded similarly. The only difference is that the Governor is not elected but he is appointed by the President under Article 155 of the Constitution and Article 356 of the Constitution makes provisions in case of failure of constitutional machinery in the State. But when an assembly is dissolved there is no failure of the constitutional machinery within Article 356. Article 164(2), which provides that the Council of Ministers shall be collectively responsible to the Legislative Assembly of the State has to be read in the same manner as we have read Article 75(3). Following our reasoning in that appeal this appeal must fail. In the result the appeal is dismissed but with no order as to costs.