Bihar State Road Transport Corporation vs State Transport Appellate Tribunal

Judicial Analysis Court Copy Headnote Facts Arguments Court observation

1991 Supreme(SC) 124

SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
(Patna High Court)
K. Ramaswamy, M.M. Punchhi
BIHAR STATE ROAD TRANSPORT CORPORATION, APPELLANT
VERSUS
STATE TRANSPORT APPELLATE TRIBUNAL AND OTHERS, RESPONDENTS.
Civil Appeal No. 3693 of 1982
decided on February 22, 1991.

Advocates:
RANJIT GHOSAL

Headnote:
Motor Vehicles Act - Section 2 – claim of compensation – Injury – Jurisdiction - Notified scheme afore-referred to, where under the Ranchi route was declared a nationalized route was brain child of appellant-Corporation itself - Initially a draft scheme was published in the Bihar Gazette under the provisions of Section 68-C of Act - Objections were invited to the proposed scheme and after considering the objections received, State Government approved the scheme with some modifications under Section 68 approved scheme was then notified under Section 68-D (3) of Act in Bihar Gazette relevant extract of the scheme is reproduced below – Held, In light of the above observations Ranchi route is identified as the line of travel on which State Transport Undertaking on nationalization is allowed to run its vehicles - Bracketed Words direct service occurring in Serial when contracted with entries in Serial Nos. 1 to 6 reveal that the total route of Ranchi without leaving any portion, stood signifying by its name that Ranchi route is a straight and direct line of travel which would be traversed by a vehicle by the State Transport Undertaking between two termini rendering all kinds of services. Any further interpretation would frustrate the object of Chapter IV-A where under the scheme is prepared - It was observed in Travels case as follows it is quite well known that under the guise of the so-called corridor restrictions permits over longer routes which cover shorter notified routes or overlapping parts of notified routes are more often than not since it is well impossible to keep a proper check at every point of the route. Oftentimes permits for plying stage carriages from a point a short distance beyond one terminus to a point at a short distance beyond another terminus of a notified route have been applied for and granted subject to the so called corridor restrictions which are but mere ruses or traps to obtain permits and to frustrate that scheme - If indeed there is any need for protecting travelling public from inconvenience State Transport Undertaking and the government will have to make sufficient provision in the scheme itself to avoid inconvenience being caused to travelling public - If interpretation put by Patna High Court in Marwari Motor Service case bracketed words direct service is to be kept valid, it would frustrate the very purpose of, for any person in that event could operate on a route by adding thereto, or subtracting and keep one terminus as a point of start, or point of ending, on an route and put forward his willingness to submit himself to the discipline called corridor restrictions which practice has been deprecated by this Court – Order accordingly

JUDGMENT

PUNCHHI, J. - This appeal by special leave is directed against the order of the High Court of Judicature at Patna dated January 29, 1982 passed in Civil Writ No. 4087 of 1981 dismissing the writ petition of the appellant in limine.

2. The appellant, Bihar State Road Transport Corporation, is a State Transport Undertaking. Under the provisions of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1939 (hereafter referred to as the Act), the State Transport Authority invited applications for the grant of stage carriage permits for the route named Bhurkunda-Chaibasa via Patratu-Pithoria-Kanke-Ranchi-Chakradharpur part of which, that is, Ranchi-Chaibasa is covered under a notified scheme dated April 1, 1960, duly in force, under the provisions of the Act. On applications received in response to the invitation, the Corporation filed its objections before the State Transport Authority claiming that no private operator could be permitted to operate on the said route, as part of it, being Ranchi-Chaibasa, was by itself a notified route and the grant of permits on the route in question would contravene a notified scheme. The objection of the Corporation was rejected by the State Transport Authority in its meeting held on January 23 and 24, 1979 taking the view that the overlapping Ranchi-Chaibasa route was restrictedly notified for direct services only and as such there could be no legal objection to the grant of permits on the Bhurkunda-Chaibasa route. It accordingly granted permits to respondents 3 and 4 herein. Appellants appeal before the State Transport Appellate Tribunal, Bihar was dismissed and the view of the State Transport Authority was uphold. The Appellate Tribunal in support of its view placed reliance on a Division Bench of the Patna High Court in Marwari Motor Service v. Chotanagpur Regional Transport Authority (AIR 1973 Pat 273 : 1973 BLJR 353) in which such an objection as raised herein was negatived. The appellants writ petition against the orders of the State Transport Appellate Tribunal, Bihar was dismissed in limine giving cause to the appellant to approach this Court for appropriate relief.

3. The notified scheme dated April 1, 1960, afore-referred to, whereunder the Ranchi-Chaibasa route was declared a nationalised route was the brain child of the appellant-Corporation itself. Initially a draft scheme was published in the Bihar Gazette on January 13, 1960 under the provisions of Section 68-C of the Act. Objections were invited to the proposed scheme and after considering the objections received, the State Government approved the scheme with some modifications under Section 68-D (2) of the Act. The approved scheme was then notified under Section 68-D (3) of the Act in the Bihar Gazette on April 1, 1960. The relevant extract of the scheme is reproduced below :

"The Bihar State Road Transport Corporation shall run and operation stage carriage services relating to routes or portions thereof specified below to the complete exclusion of other persons except those who, on the dates, specified below, hold permanent permits to run stage carriages in those routes and are hereby allowed to operate them until the dates of expiration of the existing permits :

Sl. Nature of Name of route Name of Date from which

No. service Services services are

proposed to be

plied

1. State carriage Ranchi-Muri All services April 1, 1961

or portions

thereof

2. Ditto Hazaribag Ditto April 1, 1960

Ranchi

or portions

thereof

3. Ditto Barhi-Bagodar- Ditto Ditto