AIR 1978 BOMBAY 119 ::79 Bom LR 499

Bombay High Court

Hon'ble Judge(s): V. D. Tulzapurkar, V. S. Deshpande, S. K. Desai, M. B. Naik, R. D. Kambli , JJJ

(A) Constitution of India , Art.246— Interpretation of legislative entries - General principles. The general principles relating to the interpretation of legislative entries in the Seventh Schedule can be summarised thus:- (a) Entries in the three Lists are merely legislative heads or fields of legislation, they demarcate the area over which the appropriate legislatures can operate; (b) Allocation of subjects in the Lists is not by way of scientific or logical definition but is a mere enumeration of broad and comprehensive categories; dictionary meaning of the words used, though helpful is not decisive; (c) Entries should be interpreted broadly and liberally, widest amplitude being given to the words employed, because few words of an entry are intended to confer vast and plenary powers; (d) Entries being heads of legislation, none of the items in the Lists is to be read in a narrow and restricted sense but should be read broadly so as to cover or extend to all cognate, subsidiary, ancillary or incidental matters, which can fairly and reasonably be said to be comprehended in it; (e) Since the specific entries in the three Lists between them exhaust all conceivable subjects of legislation, every matter dealt with by an enactment should as far as possible be allocated to one or the other of the Entries in the Lists and the residuary Entry 97 in L....