Thottathil B.Radhakrishnan, J .

1. These matters relate to public transport licensing and priorities in favour of public sector. The challenge is levied by the private operators.

2. The captioned writ appeals arise from a common judgment in different writ petitions which were heard together. One set of appeals is by the operators of private stage carriages, for short, the "private operators". The other set of appeals is by either the Government of Kerala, for short; "GOK", or the Kerala State Road Transport Corporation; "STC", for short. The tagged along solitary writ petition is filed by a private operator challenging the constitutional validity of section 99 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988; for short, the "1988 Act". Under challenge in that writ petition is also the Scheme finalized under the provisions of Chapter VI of that Act; the "Scheme", for short; which Scheme was also the subject matter of the writ petitions from which the writ appeals arise. The writ petition and the writ appeals also relate to the challenge by the private operators against certain amendments to the Kerala Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989, for short, the "Rules". The learned single Judge upheld the Sch