AJESH V KUMAR Vs. REGIONAL TRANSPORT AUTHORITY KOLLAM

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The common grievance of the petitioners in these Original Petitions was that the R.T.A., Kollam was not convening the meetings and considering their applications for grant of permits. It was submitted that the last meeting had been convened on 22.1.2002 and thereafter though meetings were scheduled on two or three occasions, on all those occasions the meetings were postponed. It was submitted that in the meeting scheduled to be convened on 20.6.2002 as many as 198 items had been listed for consideration and all those matters were adjourned to 4.7.2002 and a supplementary agenda also was published for consideration on 4.7.2002. Even then the meeting was not convened on that day also and the matter had been adjourned without specifying any date. Thus a large number of applications are now pending for consideration and disposal.

(2.) The learned Govt. Pleader on instructions submitted that a meeting is scheduled to be convened on 8.8.2002 and it shall be held positively on that day. I treat the above submission of the learned Govt. Pleader as an undertaking. R.123(1) of the Kerala Motor Vehicles Rules, stipulates that the R.T.A. may meet once in a month on such date as specified by the Chairman and also on such other necessary occasions as may be determined by the Chairman for the dispatch of the business. My learned brother Radhakrishnan, J. had considered the meaning of the word may in R.123(1) in O.P. 24494/98. After elaborate consideration it was held: