- (1.) Special leave granted. The appeal is heard.
(2.) The appeal by special leave is filed against the Order dated 29-7-1986 passed by the High Court of Punjab and Haryana rejecting the writ petition filed by the appellant inter alia for the issue of the writ in the nature of mandamus, directing the State Transport Commissioner, Punjab, who is exercising the powers of the Regional Transport authorities in the State of Punjab to grant permits to ply stage carriages on the route Taran Taran-Muktsar via Ferozepur and Sadiq under Chap. IV, Motor Vehicles Act, 1939 (hereinafter referred to as 'the Act') and to dispose of the applications for renewal of stage carriage permits which are pending before the Regional Transport authorities.
(3.) The appellant was a transferee of a Bus along with two permits to operate one return trip on the route Taran Taran - Muktsar via Ferozepur and Sadiq. Those permits could not be renewed owing to the default on the part of the transferor to make within time an application for the renewal of the said permits before the permits were actually transferred. Therefore, the State Transport Commissioner, Punjab, who was exercising the powers of the Regional Transport authorities instead of granting regular permits on applications made under S. 46 of the Act granted temporary permits in favour of the appellant on the route in question. Thereafter despite the request of the appellant to issue regular permits the State Transport Commissioner proceeded to invite applications for the grant of temporary stage carriage permits. Pursuant to the said notification the appellant and some others made applications. For some reasons which need not be set out here the application of the appellant was rejected and two temporary permits were granted in favour of the 2nd respondent. The appeals filed against the order granting temporary permits in favour of the 2nd respondent became infructuous as the period for which they had been granted expired before the appeals could be disposed of.;