JUDGMENT
A.H. Saika, J.
1. Heard Mr. G.N. Sahewalla, learned senior counsel assisted by Mr. N.A. Singh, learned Counsel for the petitioner. None appears for the State-respondents when the matter is taken up for admission hearing.
2. Keeping in view the issue raised in this writ petition and also upon hearing the learned Counsel for the parties, this Court proposes to disposes of this writ petition today itself at the admission stage.
3. Section 117 of the Motors Vehicles Act, 1988 (for short, ‘the Act’) reads as under :
117. Parking places and halting stations. ~ The State Government or any authority authorized in this behalf by the State Government may in consultation with the local authority having jurisdiction in the area concerned determine places at which motor vehicles may stand either indefinitely or for a specified period of time and may determine the places at which public service vehicles may stop for a longer time than in necessary for the taking up and setting down of passengers.
3A. In view of the above provision of law, the Order dated 3.8.2001 issued by the respondent No. 2, the Commissioner and Secretary to the Govt. of Assam, Transport Department, Dispur, Guwahti-6 (Annexure-1 to the writ petition) is assailed in this writ petition on the ground that b the above provision of law does not confer any such power to put restriction on the public services vehicles in the parking places mentioned in the impugned Order itself.
4. For the sake of convenience, the Order dated 3.8.2001 is quoted as under :
GOVERNMENT OF ASSAM
TRANSPORT DEPARTMENT, DISPUR
No.TMV-171/2001/ /Dated Dispur, the 3rd August, 2001
ORDER
In exercise of the powers conferred under Section 117 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 (as amended) Governor of Assam is placed (sic) to Order that the No public Service Vehicles can halt in the following places for taking up and setting down of passengers with immediate effect.
(1) Within a radius of 500 Mtrs of ASTC Bus Station of Greater Guwahati
Area.
(2) Within a radius of 300 Mtrs of ASTC Bus Stations of all the District Transport of Assam.
(3) Within a radius of 200 Mtrs of ASTC Bus Stations of all other towns of Assam.
Sd/P.C. Sharma
Commissioner and Secy. To the Govt. of Assam
Transport Department
5. Relying on the above provision of law, Mr. Sahewalla, learned senior counsel has submitted that the impugned Order is ex-facie illegal, arbitrary and passed without any jurisdiction. According to him, Section 117 empowers the authorities of State Government to determine parking places and halting stations of the public services’ vehicles but in implementation of the provision of Section 117, the State Government is required to make consultation with the local authority having jurisdiction in the area concerned. But in the instant case, no such consultation has been made with any local authority in the State a of Assam and the same is clearly evident from the Order itself.
6. At the time of issuance of notice of motion on 11.10.2001, with due’ notice to the learned State counsel appearing for the official respondents, a the Court protected the interest of the petitioner by passing the interim Order which runs as follows :
In the meanwhile, having regard to the provisions of Section 117 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, and in view of the object behind the enactment of the said provisions till the returnable date and until the reasons in support of the impugned Order are shown, the operation of the impugned Order dated 3.8.2001 shall remain stayed.
7. Notwithstanding notices to the State counsel, no affidavit-in-opposition has been forthcoming for last five years. Even no applicationhas been filed for modification, cancellation or vacation of the interim Order above mentioned.
8. In that view of the matter, on close perusal of the materials available on record including the contentions and averments made in the writ petition including the Annexures appended thereto and also upon hearing , the learned Counsel for the parities it appears that the competent authority in passing this impugned Order in exercise of the power conferred upon it by Section 117 of the Act, has acted illegally, arbitrarily and without jurisdiction. It explicitly transpires that Section 117 of the Act does not confer any such right in Order enable the competent authority to pass the impugned Order which categorically deprives of the public service vehicles from parking their vehicles in the area mentioned therein. Arbitrariness and discrimination are writ large on the face of the impugned Order as the same has been was passed only to facilitate the ASTC to the exclusion of the other public service vehicles.
9. That being so, this Court is of the view that the impugned Order cannot be sustained under the law as the same is passed in total contrast of the provision of Section 117 of the Act and at the same time, it is violative of article 14 of the Constitution of India.
10. In that view of the matter, this impugned Order is quashed and set aside.
11. Interim Order passed earlier is hereby made absolute.
12. In the result, this writ petition succeeds and stands allowed. No costs.