Mathew, J. - (1.) The appellant is a firm. It held a stage carriage permit from Shahdol to Manendragarh, a route covering a distance of about 82 miles. The appellant applied to the Regional Transport Authority for extension of the permit up to Rewa. The application was allowed. An appeal filed against the order was dismissed. But the extension of the permit up to Rewa was quashed by the High Court. It is from the order of the High Court that this appeal, by special leave, has been filed.
(2.) Mr. Phadke, appearing for the respondent, raised a preliminary objection to the maintainability of this appeal. He said that the Madhya Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation had published a draft scheme on September 3, 1971. under which the route from Shahdol to Rewa has been proposed to be nationalised, and that under Section 68-F (1-D) of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1939, no permit shall be granted or renewed during the period intervening between the date of the publication under Section 68-C of any scheme and the date of the publication of the approved scheme in favour of any person in relation to a route covered by the scheme, and that the proviso to Section 68-F (1-D) is not attracted as the permit of the appellant for the extended route had already expired before the publication of the scheme.
(3.) Section 68-F (1-D) provides:"Save as otherwise provided in sub-section (1-A) or sub-section (IC), no permit shall be granted or renewed during the period intervening between the date of publication, under Section 68-C of any scheme and the date of publication of the approved or modified scheme, in favour of any person for any class of road transport service in relation to an area or route or portion thereof covered by such scheme. Provided that where the period of operation of a permit in relation to any area, route or portion thereof specified in a scheme published under Section 68-C expires after such publication, such permit may be renewed for a limited period, but the permit so renewed shall cease to be effective on the publication of the scheme under sub-section (3) of Section 68-D.";