A.P.Misra, S.B.Alam, JJ. - (1.) BY this petition, the petitioners who are owners of buses and carrying on the business of transportation on the strength of permit granted to them, have challenged the impugned order dated 10.7.96 (contained in Annexure -2 to the writ petition), thereby they have been denied special permits. It is submitted that by the aforesaid circular dated 19.7.96, all the Regional Transport Authorities and the State Transport Authority have been restrained from granting special permits to the vehicles which are not covered by a stage carriage permit as provided in sub -section (8) of Section 88 of Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 (for short the Act). Learned counsel for the petitioners contended that recently sub -section (8) of Section 88 has been amended and by the amendment the words "to any public service vehicle including the vehicle covered by a permit issued under Section 72 including a reserve stage carriage" have been substituted in place of the unamended words "grant a special permit in relation to a vehicle covered". That by this recent amendment public service vehicles have been included under sub -section (8) of Section 88 for grant of permits.
(2.) LEARNED counsel for the State contended that public service vehicle including motor vehicle which is used or adopted to be used for contract carriage and stage carriage, therefore, special permits cannot be granted to those vehicles which are not covered under any permit. Having heard learned counsel for the parties we are of the opinion that in view of the latest amendment made by Act No. 54 of 1984 the latest legal position in this regard is that the Regional Transport Authority or the State Transport Authority, as the case may be, may for the convenience of the public grant a special permit to any public service vehicle including any vehicle covered by the permit issued under Section 72 including a reserve stage carriage or under Section 74 or under sub -section (9) of this section for carrying the passengers. The public service vehicle' is defined under sub -section (35) of Section 2 of the Act to mean any motor vehicle used or adopted to be used for the carriage of passengers for hire or reward, and includes a taxi -cub, motor cab, contract carriage and stage carriage. Thus, a special permit may be granted to any public service vehicle in accordance with the provisions of sub -section (8) of Section 88 of the Act. Here it way be made clear that any executive instruction or circular in contravention to the statutory provisions of sub -section (8) of Section 88 of the Act cannot be allowed to stand, accordingly impugned circular order dated 19.7.96 (Annexure -2 to the petition) is quashed to the extent it is in contravention to the provision of sub -section (2) of Section 88 of the Act and the respondents are directed to consider and decide the application for grant of special permit in accordance with the amended provisions of Section 88(8) of the Act. This writ petition is accordingly allowed. There shall be no order as to costs. ;