( 1 ) THIS common order shall dispose of both the writ petitions. There are five writ petitioners in W. P. No. l9169 of 2003 and there is one writ petitioner in W. P. No. 19920 of 2003. The petitioners claim to be cultivating tenants in respect of agricultural dry land admeasuring more than Ac. 9. 00s. The land belongs to sri Chennakesava Swamy Temple, gargeyapuram Village in Kurnool District. The petitioner in the other writ petition claims to be a cultivating tenant in respect of agricultural dry land belonging to sri Veerabhadra Swamy Temple of Gudikal village of Kurnool District. The land admeasuring Ac. 10. 00s. All the petitioners seek a writ of mandamus declaring the action of the temple authorities and the Assistant commissioner, Endowments, Kurnool in seeking to evict the petitioners from the lands allegedly in their possession without considering their claims for the purchase of the land under sub-section (2) of Section 82 of the Andhra Pradesh Charitable and hindu Religious Institutions and Endowments act, 1987 (hereafter called the Act for brevity) as illegal and contrary to provisions of the Act.

( 2 ) THE petitioners in the first writ petition claim th