A.K.Dutta, J. - (1.) This is an application by the Petitioner-Appellant praying for stay of the operation of the order dated 13th December, 1994 passed by a learned Single Judge of our Court in Matter No. 2089 of 1994 before him, and for stay of all further Proceedings of the said Contempt Application till the disposal of this Appeal in terms thereof for the reasons stated therein.
(2.) The facts and circumstances giving rise to the relevant Contempt Proceedings and the instant Appeal may shortly be set out as follows : On an application filed by the Respondent herein, Smt. Ava Rani Sinha (hereinafter referred to as Petitioner), the State Transport Authority, West Bengal, (hereinafter referred to as S.T.A.) had granted temporary permit in her favour for 17 weeks for ,plying Bus in the route Howrah Railway Station to Itaberia on the following Resolution taken by it on 28th August, 1992 :- "that there is no direct transport communication from Itaberia to Calcutta. The poor villagers of the locality have to reach Calcutta by changing Bus twice. It will therefore be a very great benefit to the local people if a bus plays from Itaberia to Calcutta direct.............................." The said permit was effective from 2.11.92 to 28.2.93. A second temporary permit for the said route was also granted to her for the period from 1.3.93 to 27.6.93. The Petitioner had made another application for temporary permit dated 4.6.93 before the expiry of the aforesaid second temporary permit (on 27-6-93). Her said application having not been considered by the S.T.A., she had filed a Writ Petition before the Learned Single Judge which was disposed of by the latter by order dated 17th September, 1993 directing the S.T.A. to consider her application for temporary permit dated 4-6-93 for the aforesaid route "and dispose of the same in accordance with law by passing a speaking order after giving an opportunity of hearing to the Petitioner and taking into consideration their Resolution dated 28-8-82, which is Annexure "A" to the Writ Application, within six weeks from the date of communication of the order." In compliance with the said order, the S.T.A. had considered the Petitioner's application for temporary permit, and had rejected the same by Resolution dated 24.11.93, on the ground that "as the main alignment of the route coincided with the Calcutta-Digha route which was a notified route and no ground for temporary permit was felt the prayer for permit was rejected." The same was communicated to the Petitioner by letter dated 20-12-93.
(3.) A second Writ Petition was filed by the Petitioner Ava Rani Sinha against the aforesaid Resolution of the S.T.A. dated 24-11-93, which was again disposed of by the same learned Judge by the Judgment and Order dated 16th March, 1994 after contested hearing. The learned Judge by the said Judgment and Order had quashed the aforesaid impugned Resolution of the S.T.A. dated 24.11.93, which was Annexure "F" to the Writ Application, for the reasons discussed at length therein. The learned Judge bad thereunder directed the S.T.A. to grant temporary permit to the Petitioner for a period of 17 weeks for the route Itaberia to Howrah within 7 days from the date of communication of the order. The S.T.A. was further directed" to consider the application of the Petitioner for permanent permit on the said route, and to dispose of the same in accordance with law by passing a speaking order within 12 weeks from the date of communication of this order after giving an opportunity of hearing to the Petitioner.";