Legal Case Summary

Case Details
Case ID 22b85d82-18c4-4faf-89f1-f172befdd062
Body View case body.
Case Number Civil Petitions Nos. 2633-L and 2634-L of 2001
Decision Date Mar 26, 2002
Hearing Date
Decision The Supreme Court of Pakistan dismissed the petitions for pre-emption, affirming the judgment of the Lahore High Court. The court held that the sale of land by the confirmed allottee of evacuee land was pre-emptible despite the vendor not having fully paid the settlement dues to the Federal Government. The court emphasized that the payment of such dues was a matter between the allottee and the Government, and the vendee was not immune from a pre-emption suit. Thus, the judgment of the High Court was upheld, and leave to appeal was refused.
Summary In this significant legal case, the Supreme Court of Pakistan deliberated on the application of the Punjab Pre-emption Act, 1913, concerning the sale of evacuee land. The core issue revolved around whether a sale could be pre-empted if the vendor had not settled dues owed to the Settlement Department. The court concluded that the sale was indeed pre-emptible, reinforcing the legal principle that the vendee is not shielded from pre-emption claims simply due to unresolved payments by the vendor. This ruling not only clarifies the legal standing of property sales involving allottee rights but also serves as a precedent for future cases related to property law and pre-emption in Pakistan, making it vital for legal practitioners to understand the implications of this decision. Keywords: pre-emption, property law, Supreme Court of Pakistan, Punjab Pre-emption Act.
Court Supreme Court of Pakistan
Entities Involved Not available
Judges MUNIR A. SHEIKH, KHALIL-UR-REHMAN RAMDAY, FAQIR MUHAMMAD KHOKHAR
Lawyers Ali Akbar Qureshi, Advocate Supreme Court, Muhammad Islam, Advocate-on-Record
Petitioners NAZIR AHMAD
Respondents others, JAN MUHAMMAD
Citations 2003 SLD 954, 2003 SCMR 766
Other Citations Haji Sultan Muhammad and another v. Muhammad Siddiq PLD 1973 SC 347
Laws Involved Punjab Pre-emption Act, 1913, Constitution of Pakistan, 1973
Sections 4, 21, 185(3)