IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE, ANDHRA PRADESH AT HYDERABAD WEDNESDAY, THE SIXTEENTH DAY OF DECEMBER TWO THOUSAND AND NINE PRESENT HON'BLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE SRI ANIL R. DAVE AND HON'BLE SRI JUSTICE C.V. NAGARJUNA REDDY WRIT PETITION No.27099 of 2009 Between: B. Showri Reddy and another. ...Petitioners And The State of Andhra Pradesh, Represented by its Principal Secretary, Excise Department, Secretariat, Hyderabad and others. ...Respondents Counsel for the petitioners : Sri K. Ramakrishna Reddy, Senior Advocate, assisted by Sri V. Ramchander Goud. Counsel for respondent Nos.1 to 3: Government Pleader for Prohibition & Excise Counsel for respondent No.4 : The Court made the following: ORDER: (per Sri C.V. Nagarjuna Reddy, J.) This writ petition is filed in purported public interest. The petitioners, who claim to be agriculturists and residents of Ankireddypalem Village, Guntur Rural Mandal, Guntur District, questioned the proposed grant of licence to respondent No.4 for establishing a bar and restaurant in premises No.9-89 at Lalupuram Junction of Guntur Rural Mandal. According to learned Senior Counsel, Sri K. Ramakrishna Reddy, appearing for the petitioners, the proposed bar will be within the prohibited distance of 50 meters from the National Highway. The learned Government Pleader for Prohibition and Excise, on instructions, submitted that respondent No.4 has been granted prior permission by the Excise Commissioner and the Deputy Commissioner concerned will consider the grant of licence on the basis of the prior permission. Though the learned Government Pleader for Prohibition and Excise and the learned counsel for respondent No.4 seriously disputed the locus of the petitioner, it is not necessary for us to go into the said question because the licensing authority is required to take into consideration whether the location of the bar and restaurant is in conformity with Rule 6 of the A.P. Excise (Grant of Lincence of Selling by Bar and Conditions of Licence) Rules, 2005. In this view of the matter, the writ petition is disposed of with a direction to the licensing authority to examine whether the proposed location of the bar and restaurant is in conformity with the above mentioned Rules, before taking a decision on grant of licence to respondent No.4. No order as to costs. ANIL R. DAVE, C.J. 16th December, 2009 C.V. NAGARJUNA REDDY, J. ARS