Joymalya Bagchi, J.:— The petitioner had applied for grant of contract carriage permit in respect of his trekker in the proposed route from Memary to Polempur via Jamalpur, Boro and Haripur. The respondent no. 2 by the impugned decision dated 22.11.2013 rejected the application of the petitioner observing as follows:
“The applicant was heard in the RTA Board. It appears that he has applied in Form-II for contract carriage permit. The applicant is unable to produce any offer/engagement letter of contract from any organization/institution. For the statement it appears that he is actually willing to use his vehicle as stage carriage on route which is not PMGSY road. As such the same is considered and rejected.”
A bare perusal of the aforesaid observation shows that the prayer for contract carriage permit was turned down on the ground that no offer management letter of contract from any organization/institution was submitted along with the application.
In view of the definition of “contract carriage” in Section 2(vii) of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, there is no necessity that an agreement/contract between the holder of the permit and the passenger must be in writing. The aforesaid provision is clear that the contract may either be an expressed or an implied one. Hence, in my considered opinion the insistence of the respondent no. 2 board for submission of a written offer/engagement letter of contract from any organization or institution as a condition precedent for grant of contract carriage permit is impermissible in law. Hence, petitioner's application for contract carriage permit in respect of a proposed route ought to have been considered on its own merits and in accordance with law without insisting on production of a pre-existing written contract between a party and the applicant.
It is also nobody's case that the petitioner had made a prayer for grant of stage carriage permit with regard to the vehicle in question. Learned counsel for the petitioner submits that his client had not expressed willingness at any point of time to use the vehicle as a stage carriage as observed in the impugned decision.
For the aforesaid reasons, the impugned decision is set aside. The application of the petitioner for contract carriage permit shall be reconsidered by the respondent no. 2 in accordance with law in the light of all relevant factors and in the light of the observation made herein and a decision be taken thereon within twelve weeks from the date of communication of this order. Decision so taken shall be communicated to the petitioner within two weeks thereafter.
With the aforesaid directions, the writ petition is disposed of without, however, any order as to costs.
Let urgent photostat certified copy of this order, if applied for, be given to the learned advocates for the parities upon compliance of necessary formalities.