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Civil Appeal No. 138 of 1970, decided on 25th February 1977.

(On appeal from the judgment and order of the than High Court of West Pakistan, Lahore, dated the 9th of May 1959, in Civil Revision No. 4 of 1966).

S. 4‑Pre‑emption, right of‑‑Evacuee promrty permanently trans ferred and confirmed in favour of allottee‑Pre‑emptible.‑[Pre‑emp tion].

Sher Muhammad v. Azmat Ali P L D 1968 Lah. 1171 and Fazal Elahi v. Muhammad Munawar P L D 1973 S C 347 ref.

(b) Transfer of Evacuee Land (Katchi Abadi Act XIII of 1972)

-‑‑Ss. 2(.f ) & 5‑Land in dispute not covered under definition of Khati Abadi due to not having been declared as such by Chief Settlement Commissioner‑,‑‑Right of pre‑emption not barred in respect of such land‑Punjab Pre‑eruption Act (1 of 19'3), S. 4.

Malik Maqbool Elahi Advocate Supreme Court, instructed by Muhammad Akhtar, Advocate ‑on‑Record (absent) for Appellants.

Maulvi Fhsanul Haq, Senior Advocate Supreme Court instructed by Iqbal Ahmad Qureshi, Advocate‑on‑Record for Respondents.

Date of hearing : 25th February 1977.

Tire defendants vendees contested the suit arid the following two preliminary issues were framed:‑----

(1) Whether the suit was within time.

(2) Whether the sale was not pre‑emptible.

The first issue was dropped as it was not pressed by the vendees because the suit was apparently within time. So far as the second issue is concerned the land was evacuee property and the vendees were confirmed allottees he learned Senior Civil Judge therefore by his order dated the 20th of November 1965 held that under the circumstances the land was not exempt from pre‑emption.

The vendees went up in revision to the High Court and the learned Judge in the High Court relying on the authority reported in Sher Muhammad v. Azmat Ali (P L D 1968 Lah. 1171) upheld the finding of the learned Senior Civil Judge and dismissed the revision petition.

Nur Ahmad and others the vendees filed a petition for special leave to appeal against the aforesaid judgment of The High Court. Since in a number of similar petitions leave to appeal had been granted by this Court, leave to appeal was granted to the petitioners also or, the 11th of July 1909 to consider the question as to whether the sale of evacuee property was pre- emptible or not.

Mr. Maqbool Elahi, learned Advocate for the appellants and Moulvi Ehsanul Haq for the respondents heard. The paint in question has been settled by a decision of the Full bench of this Court reported in Fazal Elahi v. Muhammad Munawar (P L D 1973 S C 347) wherein it has been held that the sale of land in the case of a confirmed allottee was pre-emptible. Learned counsel for the appellants also feebly argued that the civil Court had no jurisdiction to entertain the suit but this assertion of his also stands negative by the aforesaid authority of this Court. Learned counsel further contended that the land was liable to be resumed under the Transfer of Evacuee Lands (Katehi Abadi) Act (XIIII of 1972 are under the circumstances its sale could not therefore be pre‑empted. There is no force in this contention as well as the land in dispute was not covered under the definition of Katchi Abadi having not been declared as such by the Chief Settlement Commissioner.

There is thus no force in the appeal, which is hereby dismissed. No order as to costs as the appeal has been decreed on the question of law only.

Appeal dismissed.

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