PROVINCE OF PUNJAB vs Mst — 2025 PLC(CS) 807 LAHORE-HIGH-COURT-LAHORE

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PROVINCE OF PUNJAB VS Mst. NAZIRA SAIF R.12---Police official---Injured in police encounter and later passing away---Plea by widow for declaration as to status of 'Shaheed'---Shaheed package, entitlement to---Recognition as Shaheed not contingent on immediate fatality---Scope---Interval between injury and death inconsequential---On 15.02.2009, husband of the respondent, a police constable, was injured during a police encounter responding to a robbery---He sustained serious firearm injuries, resulting in the removal of one kidney and remained under continuous medical treatment at various hospitals and ultimately passed away on 08.05.2017---Shaheed status was granted to husband of the respondent by the Single Judge-in-Chamber which was assailed through the present Intra Court Appeal---Under judicial scrutiny in the present appeal was the pivotal question as to "whether a police official, who sustained life-altering injuries in lawful discharge of duty and later succumbed to medical complications arising therefrom, may rightfully be declared "Shaheed", despite a significant lapse of time between the incident and death, and in the absence of absolute medical certainty regarding causativeness of death---Held: Respondent's husband received injuries during the cross-firing between the robbers and the police and as a result of the same one of his kidneys was removed and then he remained admitted in various hospitals for treatment---As per the medical report, his creatinine was persistently raised and he also underwent dialysis and thereafter, he could not survive---The act of bravery of respondent's husband was an admitted fact---He was buried with full honors by the appellant-department---No intervening cause had been highlighted by the Additional Advocate General or the representative of police department, to construe that the chain of causation was not intact---Rule 12 of the Police (Award of Compensation) Rules, 1989 did not make any distinction between a death on the day when the incident took place from death that had taken place after passage of some duration of the incident---If rules were capable of bearing a reasonable interpretation favourable to the employee then such interpretation should have been preferred---The status of Shaheed should be conferred on police officers/officials who lost their lives in the performance of their functions which included loss of life during watch and ward duty---No case requiring any interference in the well-reasoned order of the Single Judge-in-Chamber was made out---The appeal being devoid of any merits was dismissed, in circumstances.

PROVINCE OF PUNJAB vs Mst — 2025 PLC(CS) 807 LAHORE-HIGH-COURT-LAHORE

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