SHIVCHAND AMOLAKCHAND Vs. STATE TRANSPORT APPELLATE AUTHORITY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) ON 3-8-1968, Regional Transport Authority, Gwalior granted a stage carriage permit to the petitioner on Shivpuri-Berad route and since then, he is running his vehicle on the said route despite several boutes of litigation at different fori. Lastly, on 8-7-1973, State Transport Appellate Authority (S. T. A. A. for short) passed an order in an appeal preferred by Madhya Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (for short m. P. S. R. T. C.) which is impugned in this petition because the permit granted to the petitioner was set aside finally by the said order.

(2.) UNFORTUNATELY, M. P. S. R. T. C. was not an applicant for the route. It was merely an objector and indeed, the objection, which was vocally pressed before the S. T. A. A. below and canvassed once again before me by Mr. Nigudkar, appertains the statutory ritual prescribed under Section 47 (3) of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1939 (the Act for, short ). Shri Nigudkar forcefully submits that no permit can be granted to any person on any route before taking action under Section 47 (3) of the Act, which prescribed for limiting the number of stage carriages which may be plied on the route. The provision relied on may be extracted :

(3.) IN my opinion, the objection is wholly meritless though a number of decisions have been cited in support of the proposition canvassed. On a plain reading of sub-section (3) of Section 47, it appears clear to me that the power to "limit" does not exclude the authority conferred thereunder to delimit or vary the "limit" at any time in any manner coforming albeit to the requirement of sub-section (1) and of property vested right of existing operations on any routes to serve mainly 'public interest. ' Indeed, power to alter and modify any order made or passed by any public authority is granted under Sections 14 as well as 21 of the General Clauses Act. It is not necessary, according to me, to take action under Section 47 (3) every time a permit is granted as the Regional authority is not required to under any representation in acting thereunder. The decision under Section 47 (3) is confined to its own administrative policy and order of the authority :- the limit" once fixed may be altered though not necessarily on the particular decision of granting a permit as there cannot be any change of policy on such occasion.