SOMNATH IYER, J. - (1.) THE Petitioner in this case complains that a permit issued to him under the provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act has been unlawfully suspended by the Secretary of the Regional Transport Authority, Chitradurga.
(2.) ON July 24, 1958, the Motor Vehicles Inspector of Chitradurga discovered that while the Petitioner's stage carriage was operating on the Harihar -Hassen route, it was overloaded at a point called Chikkajajur. The Secretary of the Regional Transport Authority, having issued a notice to the Petitioner under Section 60 of the Motor Vehicles Act calling upon him to show cause why he should not be proceeded against for overloading, suspended his permit for a period of fifteen days, and that order made by him was affirmed by the State Transport Appellate Tribunal and the Revenue Appellate Tribunal. Clause (a) of Section 60(1) of the Act under the provisions of which the permit was suspended roads: 60. Cancellation and suspension of permits. (I) The Transport Authority which granted a permit may cancel the permit or may suspend it for such period as it thinks fit (a) on the breach of any condition specified is Sub -section (3) of Section 59, or of any condition contained in the permit

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The arguments advanced before us are (a) that the permit granted to the Petitioner does not limit the number of passengers which may be carried in his stage carriage; (b) that even if the stage carriage was over -loaded, such overloading would not amount to a breach of any condition of the permit such as would entail its suspension or cancellation under Section 60(1) (a); (c) that even if there was a breach of the condition of the permit for which the employees of the Petitioner alone were responsible, it was not possible for the Transport Authority to impose a punishment on the Petitioner who was only an employer; and, (d) that the suspension of the permit if at all could have been ordered by the Regional Transport Authority which granted the permit and not by its Secretary.
(3.) THE answer to the submission that the specification of the maximum number; of passengers that may be carried on a stage carriage is not a condition of the permit is what is found in Section 48(3)(vi) of the Act. That clause authorises the Regional Transport Authority to attach to a stage carriage permit a condition that not more than the specified number of passengers may be carried on the stage carriage. The contention that only those six conditions which are enumerated in Section 59(3) of the Act are what may properly be regarded as the conditions of a permit overlooks the distinction between the Statutory conditions of a permit which are enumerated in Section 59(3) and the other conditions which may after selection be imposed by the Regional Transport Authority under Section 48(3). It is clear that those conditions so imposed Tinder Section 48(3) are, although they do not have the status of a statutory condition of a permit enumerated in Section 59(3), as much conditions of a permit as the statutory conditions. When a Regional Transport Authority attaches to a permit granted by it any of the conditions enumerated in Section 48(3), those conditions become conditions of the permit granted by it, the Infringement of which would clearly entail the punishment which may be imposed under Section 60.;