- (1.) THIS is a writ application by Bhanwarlal under Articles 226 and 227 ot the constitution and arises Mnder the following circumstances.
(2.) THE petitioner was granted a temporary permit for plying a stage carriage on the Pokaran Phalsoond route via Ujlan Bhaniyana by the Regional Transport authority, Jodhpur, on 25-9-1957. Accordingly the petitioner put one bus on the route on 19-11-1957. Opposite party No. 3 Laxminarain Gandhi is the holder of one stage carriage permit on this very route. He opposed the grant of the temporary permit in question to the petitioner but the Regional Transport authority overruled the objection and granted the permit. It appears from the resolution of the Regional Transport Authority dated 25, 26, and 27-9-1957, that the said authority had been of the opinion that the Pokaran Phalsoond route and the Phalsoond-Shergarh route should be amalgamated into one and permits may be granted for the extended route from Pokaran to Shergarh and to that end it invited fresh applications for the extended route. It further appears that on this view, the Regional Transport Authority rejected certain applications for the grant of additional permanent permits on the Pokaran Phalsoond route and also rejected the petitioner's application for a temporary permit. This happened in May, 1957. It is admitted that the Opposite party Laxminarain Gandhi went in appeal to the appellate Tribunal of the State Transport Authority and was successful in securing a stay order in connection with the consideration of the application for the extended route. Thereupon the present petitioner again applied for a temporary permit to the Regional Transport Authority on 21-7-1957. On the 29th July, the opposite party Laxminarain and another person Kartaram Chowdhari also filed two applications for permanent permits on the Pokaran Phalsoond route. All these applications came up for consideration before the Regional Transport Authority, jodhpur, on 25 to 27-9-1957, and it ordered that a temporary permit valid for four months be granted to the petitioner and another similar permit to one Hamirsingh with whom we are not concerned in the present application. The opposite party laxminarain thereupon went in appeal to the Appellate Tribunal of the State transport Authority. That tribunal by its order dated the 20th November 1957 directed stay of the operation of the resolution of the Regional Transport Authority no. 53 dated the 25th to 27th September, 1957, and it further directed that if any of the grantees had been issued a permit before the stay order was passed by the appellate Authority, the grantee or grantees as the case may be, be stopped from plying their vehicles on the said route. The petitioner challenges the aforesaid order by this writ application.
(3.) THE petitioner's contention, briefly stated, is that the Appellate Tribunal had acted without jurisdiction inasmuch as no appeal to that authority was competent against the grant of a temporary permit. It is also contended that the stay order passed by the Appellate Tribunal virtually amounted to the cancellation or suspension of the temporary permit and that no such cancellation or suspension could be ordered and in any case without hearing the petitioner.;