| Case ID |
217898cb-638b-4e5b-b40e-da9bc8b44806 |
| Body |
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| Case Number |
Civil Petition No. 871 of 1975 |
| Decision Date |
Feb 09, 1981 |
| Hearing Date |
|
| Decision |
The Supreme Court of Pakistan dismissed the petition filed by WAJID ALI, who challenged the allotment of land by THE SETTLEMENT & REHABILITATION COMMISSIONER (LAND). The petitioner alleged that his thumb impressions on the land register were forged, undermining his consent to the allotment. However, the court found that no application was made to verify the thumb impressions through expert analysis. Consequently, the court upheld the lower courts' decisions, emphasizing the presumption of regularity in official acts and the petitioner’s lack of locus standi to contest the allotment. The petition was dismissed as without merit. |
| Summary |
In the landmark case of Civil Petition No. 871 of 1975, adjudicated by the Supreme Court of Pakistan on February 9, 1981, petitioner WAJID ALI contested the allotment of land by THE SETTLEMENT & REHABILITATION COMMISSIONER (LAND). The petitioner, a displaced individual from Punjab, alleged that his thumb impressions recorded in the land register were forged, thereby nullifying his consent to the land allotment. Represented by advocates Syed Hamid Ali and Wajid Hussain, WAJID ALI argued that the thumb impressions were not genuine and requested a forensic comparison with his actual fingerprints. Despite these claims, the court noted the absence of any formal application for fingerprint verification, thus relying on the presumption of regularity in official procedures. The Supreme Court upheld the decisions of the Lahore High Court and the lower settlement authorities, affirming that the petitioner lacked the standing to challenge the allotment without concrete evidence of forgery. This case underscores the judiciary's reliance on procedural regularity and the necessity for petitioners to provide substantial proof when contesting official records. Keywords such as 'Supreme Court Pakistan', 'land allotment dispute', 'Evidence Act 1872', 'forensic fingerprint analysis', and 'judicial presumption of regularity' are pivotal in understanding the case's significance in property law and administrative accountability within Pakistan's legal framework. |
| Court |
Supreme Court of Pakistan
|
| Entities Involved |
Lahore High Court,
Allotment Committee,
Settlement & Rehabilitation Commissioner (Land)
|
| Judges |
MUHAMMAD AJAAL ZULLAH,
NASIM HASAN SHAH
|
| Lawyers |
Syed Hamid Ali,
Wajid Hussain
|
| Petitioners |
WAJID ALI
|
| Respondents |
others,
THE SETTLEMENT & REHABILITATION COMMISSIONER (LAND)
|
| Citations |
1981 SLD 455,
1981 SCMR 822
|
| Other Citations |
Not available
|
| Laws Involved |
Evidence Act, 1872
|
| Sections |
45,
79,
114
|