Case: U.P. State Road Transport Corporation Vs. Sandeep Kumar Jain

4. For the purpose of convenience, the facts in brief are gathered from Civil Appeal arising from SLP Civil No. 35947 of 2010. The facts of the case in brief are that the respondents in SLP (C) No.35947 of 2010 are holders of regular state carriage permits awarded by the State Transport Authority on the route known asvia Dewal Bridge. The permits were granted in favour of the some of the respondents onand to certain other respondents on 11.5.1994.ied route when the permits were granted to the respondents, so also the other routee was aroute when the permits were granted to the respondents.route came into existence in 1960 and the operators on the said route had to cover the route through a pantoon bridge which had been constructed on Revali Ghat. The Scheme under Sectionof the Motor Vehicles Act, 1939 was published in the year 1962 in respect of the concerned route. However, on 15.11.1977, the Scheme in respect of another route under Sectionof the Motor Vehicles Act, 1939 was also published.5. A pucca bridge was constructed at Dewal in the year 1985 for crossing the Ganga River. In view of the said development, another route i.e.,was diverted asSadat to Bijnore. Thereafter 21 permits were granted by the Regional Transport Authority, Meerut vide order datedand one permit was granted vide order dated 17.5.1990 which had been challenged before the State Transport Appellate Tribunal, the High Court as well as in this Court. This Court vide its judgment dated 10.5.1993 in SLP (C) No.6625 of 1993 upheld those 21 permits.6. Subsequently major developments had taken place, as a result of which theroute had been diverted toe, and in that regard a scheme was published. Pursuant to the newly published scheme, the Regional Transport Authority, Meerut took decisions in its meetings held on 08.05.1995 and 02.06.1995 that the permits granted in pursuance of the scheme dated 03.09.1994 will remain in operation. In respect of permits granted prior to 03.09.1994 by Regional Transport Authority, Meerut after coming into force of the Notification dated 03.09.1994, it was said to have been clarified by the High Court in Civil Misc. Petition No. 37607 of 1995 vide order dated 03.03.1997 with regard to the operation of buses on the portion betweenIt is relevant to mention herewith that the State Transport Authority, U.P. Lucknow granted 48 permits vide order dated 29.9.1989 under the route in question. The said order was challenged in Revision No.68 of 1999 before the State Transport Appellate Tribunal which came to be allowed by the judgment dated 23.10.2002. Consequently, the order passed by the State Transport Authority dated 29.09.1989 was set aside, in effect thereto, the 48 permits granted by the State Transport Authority on the route in question stood cancelled. Aggrieved by the order of the State Transport Appellate Tribunal, the permit holders filed Civil Misc. Writ Petition No.46223 of 2002 (titled M.K. Jain and 27 others vs. State Transport Appellate Tribunal, U.P. Lucknow) as well as Civil Misc. Writ Petition No. 48624 of 2002 (Smt. Kanchan & Ors. Vs. State Transport Appellate Tribunal & Ors.). These writ petitions were dismissed by the High Court on 04.04.2003. The judgment of the High Court was confirmed by this Court in Writ Petition No.7306 of 2003 (Smt. Kanchan & Ors. Vs. State Transport Appellate Tribunal & Ors.) on 17.1.2006. In effect, 48 permits granted on the route in question stood cancelled.7. In the meanwhile, the Regional Transport Authority, Meerut had issued show cause notices on 26.12.2005 to the respondents as to why the permits granted in their favour should not be cancelled in view of the another judgment of this Court dated 05.04.2005 in Civil Appeal Nos.of 1999 (titled U.P. State Road Transport Corporation vs. Omaditya Verma and Ors., 2005 (4) SCC 424  ). As mentioned supra, the Civil Appeal No. 7306 of 2003 was heard by this Court and was dismissed on 17.1.2006 confirming the judgment passed by the High Court cancelling the 48 permits. This Court concluded that the State Transport Authority while granting 48 permits as per order dated 29.9.1989 on the route in question hasexercised its jurisdiction.8. Pursuant to said judgment of this Court, the Regional Transport Authority as well as the State Transport Authority cancelled the permits of the respondents after hearing them. The orders of the Regional Transport Authority as well as the State Transport Authority were questioned by the respondents before the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad in W.P. No.2161 of 2007 which was allowed by the judgment dated 30.7.2010 and the same is impugned in these appeals.

Reasoning: The Regional Transport Authority had rightly cancelled the permits issued on the ground that the route Dewal to Bijnore is a notified route.10. The Allahabad High Court in the aforementioned judgment in detail on facts had dealt with as to how the private operators were not entitled to ply their vehicles on the notified route i.e. 11h lying betweenDewal to Bijnor. Though the respondents herein were existing operators they cannot be shown leniency in view of the fact that the route over which they were plying earlier did not include Dewal to Bijnor. Since they have now been plying the vehicles on the notified routethey cannot be permitted to do so. Though the judgment of the Division Bench of Allahabad High Court mentioned supra is confirmed by this Court in Civil Appeal Nos.of 2003 on different grounds, the fact remains that the judgment of the Allahabad High Court stood confirmed. Hence, in our opinion, the State Transport Authority is justified in relying upon the judgment of Allahabad High Court mentioned supra in Civil Miscellaneous Writ Petition no. 48624 of 2002 and the judgment of this Court in Civil Appeal Nos.of 2003 inasmuch as the very route in question that werewas a subject matter.11. It is well settled law and it is reiterated by this Court in the case of U.P. State Road Transport Corporation vs. Omaditya Verma and Ors., 2005 (4) SCC 424     that the private operators cannot be permitted to ply the vehicles on notified/nationalized route unless permitted by the Scheme. The High Court while passing the impugned judgment had not properly appreciated the impact of the judgment of this Court in the case of U.P. State Road Transport Corporation vs. Omaditya Verma and Ors., 2005 9 (4) SCC 424. After construction of Ganga Barrage in the year 1985; after diversion of both the routes i.e.e, the common strip from Dewal to Bijnore i.e. for a portion of 11 km. is being used. As the route has become a notified route pursuant to the Nationalization Scheme dated 05.11.1997, and since it is a settled principle of law that no private operators can be permitted to operate/ply vehicles on the notified route except as permitted by the Scheme, the respondents cannot be permitted to ply the vehicles on the notifiedconclusions are applicable to the facts of this case. The Constitution bench while coming to the aforementioned conclusions has considered various judgments on the point including in the case of Adarsh Travels Bus Service vs State of U.P. and Others (1985) 4 SCC 557 (Constitution Bench Judgment) etc.