17Delimitation of constituencies

(1) The Election Commission shall, in the manner herein provided, distribute, whether before or after the appointed day, the seats assigned to the Legislative Assembly of the State of Goa under section 12 to single-member territorial constituencies and delimit them having regard to the provisions of the Constitution and to the following provisions, namely:—

(a) all constituencies shall, as far as practicable, be geographically compact areas, and in delimiting them regard shall be had to physical features, existing boundaries of administrative units, facilities of communication and convenience to the public; and

(b) constituencies in which seats are reserved for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes shall, as far as practicable, be located in areas where the proportion of their population to the total population is the largest.

(2) For the purpose of assisting it in the performance of its functions under sub-section (1), the Election Commission shall associate with itself as associate members,—

(a) the sitting members of the House of the People referred to in section 11; and

(b) such six of the members of the Legislative Assembly of the existing Union territory or, as the case may be, the provisional Legislative Assembly referred to in section 13 as the Speaker thereof may nominate:

Provided that none of the associate members shall have a right to vote or to sign any decision of the Election Commission.

(3) If, owing to death or resignation, the office of an associate member falls vacant, it shall be filled if practicable, in accordance with the provisions of sub-section (2).

(4) The Election Commission shall—

(a) publish its proposals for the delimitation of constituencies together with the dissenting proposals, if any, of any associate member who desires publication thereof, in the Official Gazette and in such other manner as the Commission may consider fit, together with a notice inviting objections and suggestions in relation to the proposals and specifying a date on or after which the proposals will be further considered by it;

(b) consider all objections and suggestions which may have been received by it before the date so specified;

(c) after considering all objections and suggestions which may have been received by it before the date so specified, determine by one or more orders the delimitation of constituencies and cause such order or orders to be published in the Official Gazette; and upon such publication, the order or orders shall have the full force of law and shall not be called in question in any Court.

(5) As soon as may be after such publication, every such order relating to assembly constituencies shall be laid before the Legislative Assembly of the existing Union territory or, as the case may be, the provisional Legislative Assembly referred to in section 13.