MUNICIPAL COUNCIL PALAI Vs. T J JOSEPH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The Municipal Council, Palai, the appellant before us passed a resolution on September 12, 1958 providing for the use from October 1, 1958 of a public bus stand constructed by it for stage carriage buses starting from and returning to the municipal limits of Palai or passing through its limits. A fee of Re. 1 per day was to be charged on every such bus and 50nP per day on buses which merely pass through the municipal limits. The resolution also prohibited the use after that date of any other public place or the sides of any public street within Palai Municipal limits as a bus stand or a halting place. At the request of the bus operators the Municipal Council, by a resolution dated September 24, 1958 reduced the rates from Re. 1 to 80 nP per day and from 50nP to 40nP per day. By a further resolution dated November 22,1959 the Municipal Council modified the resolution of September 12, 1958 and instead imposed a prohibition on using as a bus stand or halting place a public place or side of public road within a radius of six furlongs from the Municipal bus stand. Some of the operators who were using that bus stand did not pay the charges due from them for the use of the bus stand. Demand notices were, therefore, issued against them. The respondent in this appeal, Joseph, as well as the respondents in the other two appeals, Anthony and Eapen, who were recipients of such notices preferred writ petitions before the High Court of Kerala challenging the validity of the action taken by the Municipal Council and praying for quashing of the demand notices issued against them.

(2.) It may be mentioned that the various resolutions of the Municipal Council to which we have adverted were passed by it in exercise of the powers conferred upon it by Ss. 286 and 287 of the Travancore District Municipalities Act, 23 of 1116 M.E. (which corresponds to A.D. 1941). Those provisions read thus:

(3.) On behalf of the respondents it was contended that the provisions of Ss. 286 and 287 of the Travancore District Municipalities Act stood repealed by implication by virtue of the provisions of S. 72 of the Travancore-Cochin Motor Vehicles Act, 1125 M.E. (corresponding to A.D.1950) which came into force on January 5, 1950. That section reads as follows: