GHULAM FARID vs AHMAD KHAN S — 2023 CLC 355 LAHORE-HIGH-COURT-LAHORE

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GHULAM FARID VS AHMAD KHAN S.4---Inheritance---Petitioners/grandchildren of deceased filed suit for declaration claiming entitlement of 7/128 share in his total legacy being legal heirs of pre-deceased daughter of deceased/propositus---Trial Court decreed the suit---Appellate Court allowed appeal of respondents/defendants---Petitioners contented that appellate Court wrongly held that mother of petitioners was predeceased from her father (i.e. in 1950) before enforcement of Muslim Family Laws Ordinance 1961, hence, petitioners were not entitled to the share of inheritance of their grandfather; and that inheritance would open the moment the person died and deceased/propositus died in 1970 after promulgation of Ordinance, 1961---Held, that undeniably, under Islamic Sharia, predeceased children were not entitled to any inheritance as only the survivors to a deceased were entitled to inheritance---By virtue of S.4 of Muslim Family Laws Ordinance, 1961 (promulgated on 15/07/1961), legal heirs of pre-deceased son/daughter of propositus would be entitled to inheritance on re-opening of the succession---Said S. 4 was declared un-Islamic by judgement of Federal Shariat Court in Allah Rakha's Case (PLD 2000 FSC 1) which judgement had been challenged by Government---Section 4 of the Ordinance, would remain in field till the decision of appeal by Shariat Appellate Bench of Supreme Court of Pakistan---Proposition that S.4 of the Ordinance, had no retrospective effect---Petitioners' right of succession came into existence only on the death of propositus as at that time the Ordinance, was already in field and operative---Only requirement of S.4 was that succession should open after the Ordinance was brought into effect---Section 4 was made applicable when succession of propositus opened and it was an established principle of Islamic Law that the succession of a Muslim would open the moment he/she died---Limitation would not preclude a person to get his share from inheritance---Revision petition was allowed and suit of petitioners was decreed accordingly.

GHULAM FARID vs AHMAD KHAN S — 2023 CLC 355 LAHORE-HIGH-COURT-LAHORE

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