NEW SAMUNDRI TRANSPORT CO. (P) LTD versus STATE OF PUNJAB & OTHERS

Citation: [1976] 2 S.C.R. 218 · Decided: 09-10-1975 · Supreme Court of India · Bench: A. ALAGIRISWAMI · Disposal: Appeal(s) allowed
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Judgment (excerpt)

A 
B 
218 
NEW SAMUNDRI TRANSPORT CO. (P) LTD. 
v. 
STATE OF PUNJAB & OTHERS 
October 9, 1975 
[A. ALAGIRISWAMI, P. K. GOSWAMI AND N. L. UNTWALIA, JJ.] 
Motor Ve/1ic/es Act, 1939-S. 60 (1 )-Scope of. 
Section 60 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1939 empowers the State Transport 
Authority to cancel or suspend a permit granted by it under certain circum-
stances. The proviso to the section states that no permit shall' be cancelled 
unless an opportunity has been given to the holder of the permit to furnish 
his explanation. 
C 
On receipt of reports and complaints regarding the appellant, the 
State 
D 
E 
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Transport Commissioner issued a show cauSI! notice to it without speeifying 
therein the nature of complaints. 
Action was taken for cenoollation of the 
permits. 
The High Court summarily dismissed the writ petition of the appel-
lant filed under Art. 226 of the Constitution against the order of the State 
Transport Appellate Tribunal. 
Allowing the appeal to this Court, 
HELD : ( 1) The High Court was not right in not interfering with the 
order of the authority cancelling the permits. A manifestly wrong procedure 
in a departmental action o.r this nature is obvious on the face of the notice 
resulting in violation of the principles of natural justice. 
[221D; 220A] 
(2) The proposed penal action bas to be particularised with reference. to 
each permit detailing the particular conditions for breach of which action is 
sought to be taken. 
Proviso to s. 60(1) which requires mandatory compliance 
is nothing short of a reasonable opportunity to the permit-holder to furnish 
his explanation. UnJess the breaches of conditions or other allegations are 
particularised with reference to each permit in the show cause notice such 
notice is clearly invalid and no action can be taken under such a notice. 
[2200: 221Dl 
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION : Civil Appeal No. 379 of 1975. 
Appeal by special leave from the Judgment and Order dated the 
4th November, 1974 of the Punjab and Haryana High Court in Civil 
Writ No. 4346 of 1974. 
Hardya! Hardy, S. K. Mehta, K. B. Nagaraja, P. 
N. 
Puri, 
M. 
Qamaruddin and R. K. Khanna, for the appellant. 
0. P. Shanna, for respondent No. 1. 
G 
Luxllii Grover and S. S . .Tauhar, for respondent No. 3. 
H 
The Judgment of the Court was delivered by 
Gosw'AMI J.-This appeal by special leave is against the judgment 
of the Punjab and Haryana High Court summarily dismissing a writ 
application under article 226 of the Constitution against the order of 
the Sta~e Transport·Appellate Tribunal, Punjab. 
' . 
I 
The appellant is a private limited company carrying on transport 
busines5 over a long period. The company was granted 33 stage 
~ 
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/ 
• 
NEW SAMUNDRI TRANSPORT co. v. PUNJAB (Goswami, J.) 219 
carriage permits for various routes. It had a sanctioned fl~et of 35 
transport vehicles. On receipt of several r.eP?rls a~d complamts fr?m 
various sources, the State Transport Comm1ss1oner issued the followmg 
show cause notice to the appellant on March 28, 1974 :-
"Regd. A.O. 
.From: 
To 
S. Balinder Singh, IAS, 
State Transport Commissioner, 
Punjab. 
The Managing Director, 
New Samundri Transport Company (P.) Ltd., 
Ferozepur. 
No. 455/JFI(2) dated Chandigarh the 28th March, 1974. 
Subject : Departmental Action. 
Memorandum 
A list of prosecutions launched against your company by 
the . Operational Staff is forwarded herewith. 
The offences 
committed are of a very serious nature. 
Your company is 
also short of fleet of fit vehicles. . A copy of the joint report 
of the Secretary, Regional Transport Authority, Jullundur 
and Motor Vehicles Inspector, Jullundur relating to the 
conditi'on of buses of your company is also enclosed. Due to 
the shortage of fit vehicles against the sanctioned fleet of 35 
buses, number of services are being missed whereby the public 
is being put to a great inconvenience. 
You are, therefore, 
required to show cause as to why departmental action by way 
of suspension/cancellation of stage carriage permits under 
section 60 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1939, should not be 
taken against your Company. Reply should be sent to this 
office within 10 days of the receipt of this notice failing 
which it will be presumed that you have nothing to say. 
State Transport Commissioner 
Punjab". 
The appellant says that an explanation was posted to the Commis-
sioner within time under certificate of posting. · According to the Com-
missioner it was not received. 
The District Judg
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