(1) REFUSAL to grant a new licence for sawmills by the Regional Director, Social Forestry, Forest Range, Rampur, to the petitioners vide communication dated 18/1/1998, based on the injunction issued by this Court on 12/12/1996 and 4/3/1997 in T.N. Godavarman Thirumulkpad v. Union of India has been put in issue in this writ petition. Mr Sharma, learned counsel for the petitioners, submits that the authority was not "required" to go by the orders of this court, which according to him were not judicial verdicts but "ad hoc orders". We are at a loss to appreciate the submission. Learned counsel apparently overlooks the mandate of Article 144 of the Constitution read with Article 141.

(2) WHILE projecting a grievance against the order dated 4/3/1997 passed by this court, the petitioners in para 13 of the grounds say thus:

"... the order in question dated 4/3/1997 passed by the Honble Supreme court did not come within the purview of the said Section 2 of the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 nor did any other law authorise the Honble Supreme court to pass the said order nor could the Honble Supreme court pass the said order on the general ground that the said order prote