Kamaluddin and 13 others V. Abdullah and another,
CLC 2021 37 · Balochistan High Court
This case involved a dispute over inherited land in Quetta. The respondent (Abdullah) claimed he owned certain properties inherited from his ancestors, but the land had never been formally partitioned among the co-sharers. He argued that while he was a minor, relatives managed the property, and some of it was later sold off by other family members without giving him his rightful share. He sued in civil court for a declaration of ownership, cancellation of mutation entries, possession, and a permanent injunction. The trial court ruled in his favor, and the other relatives appealed.
The main legal question was whether the civil court even had the authority to hear this case, given a provision in the Balochistan Land Revenue Act that generally bars civil courts from deciding partition disputes, leaving such matters to revenue authorities instead.
The High Court held that this bar does not apply when a genuine question of ownership (title) is involved, as opposed to merely how to divide an already-agreed share. Since the dispute here was fundamentally about who owned the property, not just how to split it, the civil court had proper jurisdiction. The court also found that a private partition among family members could itself create ownership rights. Finding no fault in the trial court's decision, the High Court dismissed the appeal, affirming that the respondent was indeed the owner of the disputed land. This ruling clarifies when civil courts, rather than revenue officials, can resolve property disputes rooted in inheritance.
یہ مقدمہ کوئٹہ میں وراثتی زمین کے تنازع سے متعلق تھا۔ مدعا علیہ (عبداللہ) کا دعویٰ تھا کہ وہ اپنے آباؤ اجداد سے ورثے میں ملنے والی بعض جائیدادوں کا مالک ہے، لیکن یہ زمین کبھی باقاعدہ طور پر شریک مالکان کے درمیان تقسیم نہیں ہوئی تھی۔ اس کا کہنا تھا کہ جب وہ نابالغ تھا تو رشتہ داروں نے جائیداد کا انتظام سنبھال رکھا تھا، اور بعد میں خاندان کے دیگر افراد نے اس کا حصہ دیے بغیر اس میں سے کچھ زمین فروخت کر دی۔ اس نے دیوانی عدالت میں مالکانہ حقوق کے اعلان، انتقال کے اندراجات کی منسوخی، قبضہ، اور مستقل حکمِ امتناعی کے لیے دعویٰ دائر کیا۔ ٹرائل کورٹ نے اس کے حق میں فیصلہ دیا، جس پر دیگر رشتہ داروں نے اپیل دائر کی۔
بنیادی قانونی سوال یہ تھا کہ کیا دیوانی عدالت کو اس مقدمے کی سماعت کا اختیار بھی حاصل تھا، جبکہ بلوچستان لینڈ ریونیو ایکٹ کی ایک شق کے تحت عام