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1943 Supreme(Cal) 152
CALCUTTA HIGH COURT
United Motor Transport Co. Ltd. - Appellant
Versus
Sreelakshmi Motor Transport Co. Ltd. & Ors. - Respondent
Decided On : 09-08-1943
The main legal point established in the judgment is the validity of permits issued by the Provincial Transport Authority and the rights of the plaintiffs to ply their vehicles on the road.
Headnote:
Motor Vehicles Act - Carriage of Goods and Passengers - 1914 (8 of 1914), 4 of 1939 - Summary of Acts and Sections: The court discussed the Motor Vehicles Act of 1914 and the Motor Vehicles Act of 1939, focusing on Chapter 4 of the Act, which deals with the control of transport vehicles. The court highlighted Section 44, which requires permits for transport vehicles, and Section 42, which outlines the application process and considerations for granting permits. The judgment also referenced Section 58, which defines the duration of non-temporary permits, and Section 62, which pertains to temporary permits.
Fact of the Case:
The plaintiffs, private limited companies, obtained permits under the Motor Vehicles Act of 1914 to ply motor vehicles on a specific road. The permits were later renewed by the Assam Government. Subsequently, the Provincial Transport Authority rejected the plaintiffs' application for permits, leading to a legal dispute.
Finding of the Court:
The court granted the plaintiffs' reliefs, declaring their right to ply vehicles on the road and rejecting the defendants' permits. The court also upheld the validity of the permits issued to the plaintiffs and determined that the plaintiffs had the right to ply their vehicles on the road for a specified period.
Issues: The main issues included the validity of permits issued by the Provincial Transport Authority, the rights of the plaintiffs to ply their vehicles, and the legality of permit fees and rates of fares and freight.
Ratio Decidendi: The court held that the permits issued by the Provincial Transport Authority were valid and authorized the plaintiffs to use their vehicles on the road. The court also determined that the plaintiffs had the right to ply their vehicles for a specific period and upheld the legality of the permit fees set by the Provincial Transport Authority.
Final Decision: The court granted the plaintiffs' reliefs, declared their right to ply vehicles on the road, and upheld the validity of the permits issued to the plaintiffs. The court also determined the specific period for which the plaintiffs had the right to ply their vehicles and upheld the legality of the permit fees set by the Provincial Transport Authority.
JUDGMENT
1. The plaintiffs are three private limited companies registered under the Companies Act. Their business is carriage of goods and passengers by motor vehicles. In 1937 when the Motor Vehicles Act of 1914 (8 of 1914) was in force they obtained permits to ply 22 motor vehicles of different types on the Sylhet-Shillong Road from 1st April 1937 to 31st December 1939. These permits were issued by the Assam Government, for that was the authority to issue permits under rules framed u/s 11 of the said Act. In 1939 the Motor Vehicles Act of 1914 was repealed and the Motor Vehicles Act, 4 of 1939, came into force on 1st July 1939. By Section 134 of the last mentioned Act, hereafter called "the Act," the rules framed under the Motor Vehicles Act of 1914 were kept in force, subject to some limitation and conditions not material to these appeals, for a period of nine months from the date on which the Act of 1939 came into force, that is to say, those rules remained in force up to 31st March 1940. The Assam Government exercising powers under those rules, which were thus kept in force till 3lst March 1940, renewed on 6th December 1939 those permits issued to the plaintiff companies for a period of three months, from 1st January to 31st March 1940. On 20th March 1940 those permits were again renewed by the Assam Government for a further period of three months from 1st April to 30th June 1940. As the old rules--the rules framed u/s 11, Motor Vehicles Act of 1914--ceased to have force on 31st March 1940 the Assam Government ceased to have power from after that date to issue permits and so did not issue further permits to the plaintiff companies from after that date.
2. The Motor Vehicles Act of 1939 is more elaborate than the earlier Act of 1914, which it repealed. Chapter 4 of the Act headed "Control of Transport Vehicles," is the only chapter relevant to the case before us. For in this case we are concerned with transport vehicles, namely, public service vehicles of two classes, stage carriages and goods vehicles. By Section 44 the Provincial Governments are required to constitute Provincial and Regional Transport Authorities by issuing notifications in the official Gazette. For one province there is to be one Provincial Transport Authority with functions, powers and duties defined in the Act. But a Provincial Government can by notification divide a province into smaller units called regions, and appoint Regional Transport Authorities for such units. The functions, powers, and duties of Regional Transport Authorities are also defined in the Act. Where no Regional Authority has been constituted to exercise jurisdiction over a particular area, the Provincial Transport Authority will have to perform the functions and discharge the duties imposed on Regional Transport Authorities, and where Regional Authorities have been constituted may, if so required by a Regional Transport Authority, perform those duties, etc., and also in cases where a particular route falls within the areas assigned to more than one Regional Authority. Section 42 of the Act requires the owner of a transport vehicle to take out a permit from the Regional Transport Authority in order to enable him to ply his vehicle in a public place (which includes a public road). Applications for permits are to be made to a Regional Transport Authority. The form and contents of application for permits of different classes of transport vehicles, stage carriages, contract carriages, private carriers of goods and public carriers of goods, and the matters that are to be taken into consideration by the Regional Transport Authority for granting or refusing such permits are defined in the different sections of Chap. 4 of the Act. The Provincial Transport Authority of Assam was constituted by the Assam Government by a notification published in the official Gazette on 22nd February 1940. Seven persons including the Home Minister of Assam constituted that body. That authority began to function
