IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE, ANDHRA PRADESH AT HYDERABAD (Special Original Jurisdiction) MONDAY, THE FIFTH DAY OF OCTOBER TWO THOUSAND AND NINE PRESENT THE HON'BLE SRI JUSTICE GOPALA KRISHNA TAMADA WRIT PETITION NO : 21234 of 2009 Between: 1 Hanmanthu Reddy, S/o Ganga Reddy, 74 years, Occ: Agriculture, R/o Gaggupally village of Armoor Mandal, Nizamabad District and 3 others. ..... PETITIONERS AND 1 The Joint Collector (CS),Karimnagar District, Karimnagar and 2 others. .....RESPONDENTS THE HON'BLE MR JUSTICE GOPALA KRISHNA TAMADA WRIT PETITION No.21234 of 2009 ORDER: This writ petition is filed seeking a Writ of Mandamus declaring the action of the 3rd respondent in seizing the stocks i.e., 160 bags, 80 bags and 70 bags of Warangal culture variety paddy (190 quintals) of the petitioners 1 to 3 respectively and the lorries bearing No. AP 9 W 4935 and ADT 9600 of the 4th petitioner through panchanama dated 01.10.2009 even though the petitioners are farmers and no control order is applicable to their case and also the action of the 1st respondent in proposing to issue the orders for sale of the said seized stock, as illegal and arbitrary and consequently sought for a direction to the respondents not to sell the said seized stock and to release the said seized stock and lorries in favour of the petitioners. The petitioners 1 and 2 are the agriculturists and they raised the paddy in their lands and sold the said paddy to a rice mill at Jagtial and while the same was being transported in the 4th petitioner lorries bearing No. AP 9 W 4935 and ADT 9600 on 01.10.2009, the 3rd respondent and his staff seized the said lorries along with entire stock of paddy under cover of panchanama on the ground that the petitioners have failed to produce way bills and market fee receipts. Pursuant thereto, on the basis of the report furnished by the 3rd respondent, the 1st respondent initiated proceedings under Section 6-A of the Essential Commodities Act. Hence, the present writ petition. Now that the proceedings under Section 6A of the Essential Commodities Act are very much pending before the 1st respondent, this Court is of the view that this writ petition can be disposed of without going into the merits of the case. The writ petition is accordingly disposed of with a direction to the 1st respondent-Joint Collector to complete the proceedings pending before him under Section 6-A of the Essential Commodities Act 1955 and pass necessary orders thereon, within a period of eight weeks from today. However, inasmuch as the petitioners have come forward stating that they are prepared to furnish a bank guarantee in a sum of Rs.1,00,000/- as against the value of the seized stock, this Court is of the view that instead of keeping the stocks during the pendency of the proceedings initiated under Section 6-A of the Act, the seized stock shall be ordered to be released in favour of the petitioners 1 to 3 respectively and the Lorries bearing No. AP 9 W 4935 and ADT 9600 in favour of the 4th petitioner on condition of the petitioners furnishing bank guarantee in a sum of Rs. One Lakh to the satisfaction of the 1st respondent. No order as to costs. _____________________________ (GOPALA KRISHNA TAMADA, J) 05-10-2009 Gsn.