( 1 ) BY this writ petition under Article 227 of the Constitution of India, the petitioner seeks quashing of the order dated 24. 5. 96 passed by Debt Recovery Tribunal refusing to stay the proceedings initiated by the respondentbank under Section 19 of the Recovery of Debts Due to Banks and Financial Institutions Act, 1993 (for short the Act ).

( 2 ) LEARNED Counsel for the respondent has raised a preliminary objection with regard to maintainability of the writ petition on the ground that an adequate and efficacious remedy is available to the petitioner under Section 20 of the Act. It is undisputed that the Appellate Tribunal has since been constituted. Inevitably, the issue here has to run around the language of the statute and, therefore, the provisions of the Section 17 of the Act maybe read at the very outset. Section 17 reads as under:

"jurisdiction, powers and authority of Tribunals.- (1) A Tribunal shall exercise, on and from the appointed day, the jurisdiction, powers and authority to entertain and decide applications from the Banks and financial institutions for recovery of debts due to such Banks and financial institutions. (2) An Appellate Tribunal shall