RATAN LAL GUPTA Vs. STATE TRANSPORT AUTHORITY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is a special appeal from an order of a learned single Judge (in this case the Hon'ble the. Chief Justice) dismissing a petition for a writ made under Article 226 of the Constitution.

(2.) It appears that the applicant's father was one of the many applicants for grant of a permit for plying a stage carriage on the Muzaffarnagar-Bhopa-Bhakerheri route. The application for a permit made by Munna Lal was, however, not granted and a permit was granted to another man, Munna Lal then went up in appeal to the State Transport Authority. During the pendency of the appeal, however, Munna Lal expired and the appellant made an application for the substitution of his name in place of his deceased father. This application was rejected and the applicant filed the writ petition which was dismissed and which is now the subject-matter of the special appeal.

(3.) Originally there were two vacancies on the Muzarfarnagar-Bhopa-Bhokerheri route. At the time when the appeal was filed by Munna Lal against the refusal of a permit to him only one of the vacancies had been filled up. Subsequently, however, the other vacancy was also filled up and a permit was granted to Qadam Singh. Munna Lal objected to the grant of a permit to Qadam Singh, but his objection was dismissed. He also went up in appeal against the grant of a permit to Qadam Singh and against the rejection of his objections. In this appeal also an application was made by the appellant for substitution on the death of his father Munna Lal and this application was also rejected. In the writ petition filed by the appellant the orders in both the appeals pending before the State Transport Authority Tribunal rejecting the appellant's prayer for substitution were challenged. The learned Chief Justice, however, held that the right to obtain a permit was a personal right and did not survive on the death of the person who had originally applied for a permit and as such the appellant had no right of substitution. With regard to the other matter where the appeal was directed against the grant of a permit to Qadam Singh the period for which the permit had been granted to Qadam Singh had already expired and the prayer for grant of a relief concerning it in the writ petition had become infructuous.