-: 1 :- wp-2772/11 IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION WRIT PETITION NO. 2772 OF 2011 Sambhaji N.Holkar. ..Petitioner. Versus The State of Maharashtra & Ors. ..Respondents. Mr. S. N. Sabrad i/b Yuvraj Patil for the petitioner. Mr. S. N. Bhosale, AGP for R-1 to 3. Coram : RANJIT MORE, J. Date : April 5, 2011. P. C. : 1. Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and learned AGP for the State. In the year 1996 the petitioner was granted licence for running a fair price shop at village Sadalgaon, taluka Shirur, district Pune. Pursuant to the complaints filed by the residents of village Sadalgaon, show cause notice was issued by respondent no.3 to the petitioner calling upon him to explain as to why his licence should not be cancelled. After hearing petitioner, respondent no.3 ultimately cancelled the petitioner’s licence on various charges. The petitioner preferred appeal challenging the cancellation of licence before respondent no.2. However same was also dismissed. The petitioner thereafter filed second appeal before respondent no.1 in the year 2009 and same is pending. srp -: 2 :- wp-2772/11 2. Since the cancellation of petitioner’s licence to run the fair price shop is being confirmed by the first appellate authority and there is no stay from respondent no.1, respondent no.3 issued public advertisement inviting applications for issuance of fresh licence to run the fair price shop in village Sadalgaon. This public advertisement was issued on 14/3/2011, which was published in the newspaper on 19/3/2011. The petitioner has therefore approached this Court by filing the present writ petition, inter-alia, seeking reliefs of stay to the initial order of cancellation of his licence and direction for expeditious hearing of his second appeal. 3. In my view, stay to the cancellation of petitioner’s licence to run the fair price shop cannot be granted for two reasons. Firstly, though the petitioner has filed second appeal before respondent no.1 in the year 2009, he has not taken any positive steps and there was no stay during the pendency of appeal before respondent no.2. Secondly, granting such stay will amount to setting aside the order cancelling the petitioner’s licence at interim stage. That cannot be permitted. In my opinion, the only relief which can be granted in favour of the petitioner is that fresh allotment of fair price shop licence shall be subject to the final outcome of petitioner's second appeal pending before respondent no.1. In the light of this fact situation, the petition is disposed of -: 3 :- wp-2772/11 by passing following order. -: O R D E R :- (i) Respondent no.1 is directed to hear and dispose of the petitioner’s second appeal, memo of which is annexed at Exhibit-D to this petition, as expeditiously as possible and preferably within the period of eight weeks from the date of receipt of a copy of this order. (ii) The fresh allotment of licence to run the fair price shop at village Sadalgaon in pursuance of advertisement dated 14/3/2011 shall be subject to the final outcome of second appeal preferred by the petitioner before respondent no.1. (RANJIT MORE, J.)