SUNILKUMAR E.K. Vs. STATE OF KERALA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioners are persons who are autorickshaw drivers and are operating the same as contract carriages to eke out their livelihood. The petitioners grievance is that the decision of the Regional Transport Authority (for short "RTA") to grant permits within the Corporation of Cochin; to only residents of the Corporation of Cochin, is, arbitrary and discriminatory. The issue to be resolved in the above writ petition is the arbitrariness and discrimination projected by the petitioners; pitted against the practical difficulties of the authorities.

(2.) ADMITTEDLY , the petitioners are all persons having valid contract carriage permits to operate in the Panchayat areas in and around the Corporation area of Cochin. The petitioners contend that one fine morning they were intimated of the decision of the RTA, Ernakulam to grant 2,815 autorickshaw permits within the Corporation of Cochin. However, when they approached the RTA with an application, the Registering Authority refused to accept the same on the ground that they are all residents outside the Corporation limits. In that context they approached this Court with the above writ petition and sought for consideration of their application without looking into the situs of their residence. The petitioners claim that it is after a long period of time that fresh auto permits are being issued within the Corporation limits and restricting such issuance only to the persons who are residing within the Corporation limits would be a clear act of discrimination and the same is vitiated by arbitrariness.

(3.) ,000. In the Adalats conducted, it was revealed that only 1,387 autorickshaws having valid permits are running within the Corporation limits. 4. There is, hence, shortage of autorickshaws and this caused considerable difficulty to the travelling public. As a direct consequence, the autorickshaws plying outside the boundaries of the Corporation also made inroads into the Corporation limits. Though this, to a great extent, alleviated the problems of the travelling public, it created conflict in so far as the autorickshaws with valid city permits oppose the same and in any event the operation of such autorickshaws, which did not have permits to operate within the city limits, were illegal. Litigations were also filed, which resulted in this Court issuing orders to prohibit operation of autorickshaws without permit to operate within the city limits. It was to settle such conflict with law and between permit owners and permitless owners of autorickshaws that the office of the RTO attempted to issue permits in accordance with the G.O., at least to ensure that the permits allowed as per the notification of the Government is satisfied.