RAMNATH VERMA Vs. STATE OF RAJASTHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) These five appeals on certificates granted by the Rajasthan High Court raise common questions and will be dealt with together. Appeals Nos. 142, 144 and 145 are with respect to Jaipur-Bharatpur route, appeal No. 143 with respect to Jaipur-Shahpur-Alwar-Himkathana route, and appeal No. 146 with respect to Ajmer-Kotah route. It appears that the Rajasthan State Roadways, which is a State Transport Undertaking, published five schemes in. pursuance of S. 68-C of the Motor Vehicles Act, No. 4 of 1939 (hereinafter called the Act). Later, the Government of Rajasthan appointed the Legal Remembrancer to consider objections to these five draft schemes. Objections were filed by the Stage carriage permit-holders who were playing on these five routes. The objections with reference to the three routes with which these appeals are concerned were heard on December 7 and 14, 1960 and the draft schemes were approved by the Legal Remembrancer on December 14 and 15, 1960 with slight modifications.

(2.) It appears further that the objectors relating to Jaipur-Ajmer and Jaipur-Kotah routes, which were among the five schemes, published as above, objected to these two schemes 013 various grounds and prayed that they should be given an opportunity to show that the two draft-schemes did not provide an efficient, adequate, economical and property co-ordinated road transport service and should therefore be not approved and also prayed that evidence might be taken in support of their contentions. One of the permit-holders on the Jaipur-Ajmer route was Malik Ram who had contended that the draft-scheme should be rejected in its entirely and had desired to lead evidence for that purpose. The Legal Remembrance, however, held on the basis of an earlier decision of the Rajasthan High Court in Chandra Bhan vs. State of Rajasthan, 1961 Raj LW 47 that it was not open to him to reject the scheme in its entirety and he could only either approve of it or modify it. He further held that he could take no evidence while considering objections to the scheme and all that he had to do was to hear arguments on either side. Malik Ram then moved the Rajasthan High Court by a writ petition which was dismissed. He then came to this Court by special leave challenging the view taken by the Legal Remembrancer on the two points above. This Court allowed Malik Ram's appeal and held that it was open to the Legal 1Ramembraneer to reject the draft scheme or to take evidence, if necessary, though it was pointed out that it would be within the discretion of the State Government or the officer appointed by it to hear objections to decide whether the evidence intended to be produced was necessary and relevant to the inquiry, and if so to give a reasonable opportunity to the party desiring to lead evidence to do so within reason, and that the State Government or the officer concerned would have all the powers of controlling the giving and recording of evidence that any court has. This decision was given on April 14, 1961 (see Malik Ram vs. State of Rajasthan AIR 1961 SC 1575).

(3.) In the meantime a large number of writ petitions were filed in the Rajasthan High Court challenging the approved schemes with respect to the three routes with which we are concerned in the present appeals and also with respect to the other two routes. These petitions came to be beard after the decision of this Court in Malik Ram's case, (supra). So far as the petitions relating to Jaipur-Ajmer route were concerned, they were not pressed in view of the decision of this Court quashing the scheme with respect to that route and directing the Legal Remembrancer to hear the objections over again. With resect to Ajmer-Kotah route, the High Court allowed the objections on the basis of the decision of this Court in Malik Ram's case, (supra) as the objectors in those cases had wanted to lead evidence on the question of rejection of the draft-scheme in its entirety, and they had not been given an opportunity to do so. But with respect to the three routes with which the present appeals are concerned, the High Court dismissed the writ petition on the ground that there was nothing to indicate that the appellants desired to lead evidence in support of their case that the draft-schemes should be totally rejected. It was contended before the High Court in that it was useless for the appellants to make any application for the taking of evidence because it would in any case have been rejected as the Legal Remembrance had already taken the view that he could not reject the schemes as a whole. The High Court was however not impressed with this argument and held that the order of the Legal Remembrancer did not show that he thought that the draft scheme should be totally rejected but felt unable to do so because of the decision of the High Court in Chandra Bhan's case. 1961 Raj LW 47. On the other hand, the High Court was of the view that the Legal Remembrancer considered the objections raised before him in detail and his order showed that he only thought that the schemes should be modified in part and were otherwise fit for approval. The appellants then applied to the High Court for certificates, which were granted; and that is how the matter has come up before us.