1 IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE FOR RAJASTHAN AT JODHPUR O R D E R S.B.Civil Writ Petition No. 5124/2008 Manphool Ram Vs. State of Rajasthan & Ors. ......... Date of Order : 12th February, 2009 P R E S E N T HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE H.R.PANWAR Mr. Kailash Khatri for the petitioner. Mr. B.L.Tiwari, Addl. Govt. Counsel for the respondents. BY THE COURT By the instant writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, the petitioner has challenged the order Annex.3 dated 29.03.2007 passed by District Magistrate, Sri Ganganagar whereby the Arms Licence granted in favour of the petitioner being Arms Licence No. 316/1966 came to be cancelled. The petitioner has filed the instant writ petition without availing and exhausting the alternative statutory remedy of appeal. Section 18 of the Arms Act, 1959 provides that any person aggrieved by an order of the licensing authority refusing to grant a licence or varying the conditions of a licence or by an order of the licensing authority or the authority to whom the 2 licensing authority is subordinate, suspending or revoking a licence may prefer an appeal against that order to such authority (hereinafter referred to as the appellate authority) and within such period as may be prescribed. Provided that no appeal shall lie against any order made by, or under the direction of the Government. In the instant case, the order impugned has been passed by the District Magistrate, Sri Ganganagar, the licensing authority, and therefore, it is appealable under Section 18 of the Arms Act, 1959. It is settled law that without exhausting the statutory remedy of appeal, a writ petition is not entertainable. In this view of the matter, the writ petition is dismissed. However, it will be open for the petitioner to challenge the order impugned by way of an appeal. No order as to costs. (H.R.PANWAR), J. rp