AUTOMOBILE TRANSPORT RAJPUTANA PRIVATE Vs. TRANSPORT APPELLATE TRIBUNAL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE six special appeals before us are directed against the judgments of a learned single Judge of this Court dated 15th and 18th November, 1965 respectively by which the learned Judge issued identical directions restraining certain operators, who had obtained permits from the Regional Transport authority, Jaipur on Jaipur-Malpura-Kekri-Beawar route from plying their buses between Jaipur and Sanganer and further issued consequential directions to the regional Transport Authority, Jaipur to amend the permits of these operators so that their routes terminate at Sanganer instead of at Jaipur. The appeals can conveniently be disposed of together. The history of the matter may briefly be recounted for a proper appreciation of the points canvassed before us.

(2.) THEN contest has arisen between certain existing operators on the route in question and those, who wanted to avail of this route, as a sequel to nationalisation of certain routes in Rajasthan. When the State of Rajasthan embarked on the policy of nationalisation of bus routes, the State Transport authority, Jaipur issued general directions that permits on 'a' Class routes be not granted and the operators displaced as a result of nationalisation be provided with alternative routes on them. The State Transport Authority also issued certain directions to the Regional Transport Authorities to desist from opening straight and long routes which were to overlap a number of small routes and not to grant permits on such routes without its prior approval, vide its resolution No. 6 dated 29th November, 1958.

(3.) JAIPUR-TONK-DEOLI-KOTA route was nationalised in 1962. The final scheme for that route was published in the Rajasthan Gazette of 2nd April, 1962 and it came into operation on 15th May, 1962. Implications of this scheme will have to be examined at the appropriate place in the judgment in considering the question whether the Regional Transport Authority could have issued any permits thereafter so as to embrace Jaipur-Sanganer portion of this nationalised route. The scheme of nationalisation for the Jodhpur-Bilara-Ajmer route was published in the rajasthan Gazette of 31st August, 1962 and it came into operation from 15th october, 1962. The appellants in Special Appeals Nos 48, 49 and 50 of 1965 were the displaced operators if be Jodhpur Bilara-Ajmer route. Their permits were subsisting when the scheme of nationalisation came into force and stood cancelled only from that 'late. In other words, but for the scheme, their permits would have been current for some time. The significance of this will be considered while discussing the question about the duration of the permits obtained by these persons on the Jaipur-Malpura-Kekri-Beawar route.