MADHAB CHANDRA AND ORS. Vs. SECRETARY, REGIONAL TRANSPORT AUTHORITY AND ORS.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS order shall dispose of Civil Rules Nos. 184 and 192 to 198 of 1954 and another set of rules to be dealt with later. The petitioners in these rules had permits, in respect of Stage Carriages authorising them to ply on Dhubri -Bilasipara -Fakiragram -Kokrajhra -Chapar and Dhubri -Jogighopa Routes in Goalpara District. Their case is that they were plying their carriages since 1950 and renewal of permits was refused to them on 28 -2 -1954. As a result, the three petitions for suitable writs were moved in this Court. They formed the subject -matter of Rules Nos. 27, 38 & 39 of 1954. These rules were disposed of by an order of this Court dated 14 -5 -54.

(2.) ON behalf of the Regional Transport Authority, an affidavit in opposition has been put in. According to this affidavit, the applications for permits to ply on the old route dated 26 -7 -54 have not yet been disposed of though it is averred that the petitioner in Rule No. 184 and other members of his Association who are petitioners in the other cases accepted and agreed to the arrangement decided upon and also utilised their permits for plying on the new route. The applications for the new route were without prejudice to the applications for permits to ply on the original route.

(3.) THE same question arises in the second set of Rules Nos. 199 to 207 of 1954 though the facts are slightly different, in these cases the petitioners applied on 20th July that their petitions filed in February 1954 be treated as applications for fresh permits. These applications also have not been disposed of so far, and no different reasons have been stated in justification of the inaction on the part of the Regional Transport Authority so far as these cases are concerned. The situation in the rules being exactly the same as in the rules disposed of above, the order given in the first set of rules, shall cover these rules as well.