HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE GOPALA KRISHNA TAMADA WRIT PETITION No. 20938 of 2009 Date: 5.11.2009 Between: V. Venkat Reddy and others. … Petitioners and The District Collector, Ranga Reddy District. … Respondent HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE GOPALA KRISHNA TAMADA WRIT PETITION No. 20938 of 2009 Order: The petitioners, who claim to be agriculturists, own agricultural lands admeasuring Acs. 235.83 gts., in Chakrampalli and Berelli Villages of Moinpet and Bantaram Mandals, Ranga Reddy District. According to them, the agricultural produce raised from out of the said agricultural lands was stored in a godown belonging to one K. Ramachandraiah. While so, on 17.7.2009, the Assistant Supply Officer, surprised the godown of the said Ramachandraiah and seized the entire stock of 730 quintals of red gram stored by the petitioners by conducting a panchanama on the ground that the said storage was not supported by any valid documents. Coming to know of the said seizure, the petitioners approached the Collector, Ranga Reddy District and filed a petition on 20.7.2009 stating that the said seizure is illegal and for the sake of convenience and safety, they stored the red gram so produced in the said godown and requested the Collector to release the said stocks. However, when the Collector did not pass any orders on the said petition, they approached this Court and filed Writ Petition No. 14994 of 2009 and this Court by order dated 27.7.2009, directed the Collector, Ranga Reddy to consider their objections and pass appropriate orders. This Court further observed that the seized stocks shall not be sold. Thereafter, the Collector issued show cause notices to the petitioners on 10.8.2009 calling upon them to submit their objections to the said show cause notices and upon considering the objections filed by them, passed an order confiscating the entire stock of 730 quintals of Red gram. The said order of confiscation was passed on 10.9.2009. The same is under challenge in this writ petition. Sri V.H.V.R.R. Swamy, learned counsel for the petitioners tried to impress upon this Court stating that the petitioners are only agriculturists and though they filed detailed objections to the show cause notice, the Collector had not considered the same and passed the order of confiscation. Learned counsel further contends that proceedings under Section 6-A of the Essential Commodities Act have been initiated against the said Ramachandraiah, i.e., the owner of the said godown also. Subsequently, they approached this Court and filed Writ Petition No. 14994 of 2009. It appears, in the light of the orders passed by this Court on 27.7.2009 in the aforesaid writ petition, the Collector has impleaded the petitioners as respondents to the proceedings under Section 6-A of the Act and issued show cause notices to them, which is contrary to the provisions of the Essential Commodities Act. Apparently, against an order of this nature, the petitioners have an alternative, statutory remedy of appeal under Section 6-C of the Act before the District and Sessions Judge. The petitioners instead of exhausting the said remedy have straight- away approached this Court. The petitioners can as well urge all the contentions raised in this writ petition before the Sessions Court and I am sure the Sessions Court will consider the same. In that view of the matter, I see no merit in this writ petition. The writ petition is accordingly dismissed reserving liberty to the petitioners to approach the appellate authority and file an appeal, preferably, within a period of two weeks from today. No costs. ____________________________ GOPALA KRISHNA TAMADA,J Date: 5th November, 2009 pnb