SHAHEED KHAN Vs. STATE OF M.P.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) IN this batch of petitions, the petitioners have challenged the constitutional validity of the amendments made by the State Government by Notification dated 24 -11 -2010 published in M. P. Rajpatra, dated 24 -11 -2010 in Rules 64, 67, 77, 103, 116 and 204 of the M. P. Motor Vehicles Rules, 1994 (hereinafter referred to as the 'Rules') and the insertion of Rule 116 -A in the aforesaid Rules. As the issues involved in all the petitions are similar, they are heard and decided concomitantly by a common order.

(2.) MOST of the petitioners in the instant petitions, except a few, hold temporary permits issued for plying stage carriages while some hold regular permits for plying stage carriages. It is submitted that the petitioners have been in the transport business and have been obtaining regular stage carriage permits under section 72 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 (hereinafter referred to as the 'Act' for short) and mostly temporary permits under section 87 of the Act and are regularly plying stage carriages on various routes in the State of M. P.

(3.) IT is submitted by the learned counsel for the petitioners that vide Notification dated 24 -11 -2010 the impugned amendment has been made by the State by inserting Rule 77(1a) in the M. P. Motor Vehicles Rules, 1994 (hereinafter referred to as the 'Rules of 1994) whereby it has been prescribed that while granting the stage carriage permits, the permit granting authority shall not do so in respect of a vehicle which has completed 10 years from the year of its manufacture in case of inter -state route, 15 years from the year of manufacture in case of ordinary route within the State and 20 years from the year of manufacture in case of any other route and has further provided that permits of long distance routes of 150 K.Ms, and above in a single trip shall be granted to ordinary buses only in cases where the buses are having a seating capacity of not less than 50+2 seats excluding the driver and conductor.