JUDGMENT :

As the issue involved in these writ petitions is the same, they are taken up together for consideration and disposed by this common judgment. For the sake of convenience, the reference to facts and exhibits is from W.P.(C).No. 9 of 2020.

2. The petitioners are all stage carriage operators who are aggrieved by the stand taken by the respondent authorities under the Motor Vehicles Act that, for obtaining a fresh stage carriage permit, they have to offer a vehicle that is not older than 8 years, for operation under the permit. The stand taken by the respondents is stated to be based on the decision taken by the State Transport Authority [STA] at its meeting on 16.01.2019, the minutes pertaining to which are produced as Ext.P3. The relevant portion of Ext.P3 minutes reads as follows:

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4. As per Section 72(2) the RTA's are empowered to grant permit for the stage carriage of a specified description when it decides to grant a stage carriage permit. As “specified description” has been defined by the Hon'ble Supreme Court. The Hon'ble Supreme Court in CA No.5227/2003 dated 04/08/2010 [2010 (4) KLT 597 SC] has held that “the exp