THE HON'BLE SRI JUSTICE NOOTY RAMAMOHANA RAO WRIT PETITION No : 10032 of 2008 01.05.2008 Between: Maddela Bhadraiah & others ..... PETITIONERS AND Special Deputy Collector (Tribal Welfare), Bhadrachalam, Khammam District & others .....RESPONDENTS The Court made the following O R D E R: Heard the learned counsel for the petitioners and the learned Government Pleader for Social Welfare. The Special Deputy Collector, Bhadrachalam passed orders in his proceedings in Case No.5/2005/MGR against the writ petitioners herein on 17.11.2007 ordering their ejectment from out of the land of an extent of Ac.1.20 guntas in Survey No. 138 of Bandarugudem Village of Manuguru Mandal of Khammam District. It is not in dispute that against this order of the Special Deputy Collector, an appeal is provided to the Additional Agent to the Government, Bhadrachalam, Khammam District under Section 8 of the Andhra Pradesh Scheduled Areas Land Transfer Regulation Act, 1959. The writ petitioners have asserted that such an appeal had been preferred on 14.03.2008 and along with the appeal, an interlocutory application was also moved seeking stay of the operation of the orders of the Special Deputy Collector dated 17.11.2007, but the 2nd respondent did not choose to pass orders either on the stay petition or in the main appeal. Therefore, the present writ petition has been instituted. Once an appeal is preferred to the 2nd respondent, it is only expected that it will be attended to at the earliest convenient time. If the appeal itself cannot be decided, the interlocutory application moved by the parties seeking urgent interim orders could be attended to in the meantime. In these set of circumstances, I consider it appropriate to direct the 2nd respondent to entertain, hear and decide the appeal preferred against the orders of the Special Deputy Collector, Bhadrachalam dated 17.11.2007 within three months from the date of receipt of a copy of this order. Till such time, the status quo existing as of now with regard to possession be maintained. It is, however, open to the 2nd respondent to independently consider the interlocutory application moved by the writ petitioners herein and decide the same even before it decides the appeal preferred to it. With this, the writ petition stands disposed of, but however, without costs. (NOOTY RAMAMOHANA RAO, J) 1st May 2008 Note: Issue CC in three days. (bo) ksld