- (1.) These are appeals against the judgment of the High Court of Madras on a certificate given under Art. 133 (1)(c) of the Constitution, and they raise a question of some importance as to the true legal character of a permit when it is renewed under the provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1939 (Act No. IV of 1939) hereinafter referred to as the Act.
(2.) In order to appreciate the contentions of the parties, it is necessary to state the material facts leading up to the present dispute. Towards the end of 1952, the appropriate authorities under the Act decided to grant two additional permits for stage carriages in the Ondipudur-Agricultural College route in the town of Coimbatore in the State of Madras, and invited applications therefor under S. 57 of the Act. There were as many as 39 applicants, and by his order dated 3rd December 1952, the Regional Transport Authority granted one permit to applicant No. 24, the Thondamuthur Trading Company Ltd., and another to applicant No. 30, the V. C. K. Bus Service. There were appeals by some of the unsuccessful applicants to the Central Road Traffic Board, which by its order ,dated 19th February 1953, set aside the order of the Regional Transport Authority and granted the permits, one to States Transports Ltd., and another to Thirumalaiswami Goundar. Revisions were preferred against this order by the aggrieved applicants under S. 64-A of the Act, and by its order dated 9-7-1953, the Government confirmed the grant of the permit to Stanes Transports Ltd., but set aside the permit given to Thirumalaiswami Goundar, and granted it instead to Annamalai Bus Transport, Ltd.
(3.) Thereupon, applicants Nos. 24 and 30 moved the High Court of Madras under Art. 226 for a writ of certiorari to quash the order of the Central Road Traffic Board dated 19-2-1953 and of the Government dated 9-7-1953; but the applications were dismissed by Rajagopala Ayyangar, J. on 8-3-1954. Against the orders of dismissal, Writ Appeals Nos. 31 and 32 of 1954 were preferred, and they were dismissed by Rajamannar, C. J. and Panchapakesa Ayyar, J. on 21-3-1956. It should be mentioned that the operation of the order dated 19-2-1953 was stayed pending the disposal of the revision under S. 64 A and the writ proceedings in the High Court, with the result that both Thondamuthur Trading Company Ltd.. and V.C.K. Bus Service which had been granted permits by the Regional Transport Authority on 3-12-1952 continued to run their buses notwithstanding cancellation of those permits on 19-2-1953. It should also be mentioned that in June 1954 the business of the V.C.K. Bus Service which was the grantee of one of the permits under the order of the Regional Transport Authority dated 3-12-1952 was taken over by a Company called the V.C.K. Bus Service Ltd., which is the appellant before us, and by an order of the Regional Transport Authority dated 7-7-1954 it was recognised as the transferee of the permit granted to V.C.K. Bus Service.;