MUHAMMAD SULEMAN Versus ZUBAIDA BIBI

ORDER

AJMAL MIAN, J.--- This is a petition for leave to appeal against the order dated 11-4-1993 passed by a learned Single Judge of the Lahore High Court in Writ Petition No.4202 of 1992 filed by the petitioner against the decree of the appellate family Court for a sum of Rs.4,00,000, being the amount of dower, dismissing the same. The petitioner has, therefore, filed the present petition for leave to appeal.

2. In support of the above petition, Mr. Mahmood A. Qureshi, learned Advocate-on-Record appearing for the petitioner, has vehemently contended that since the petitioner's case was that factually he had paid the above dower amount to respondent No. 1, the appellate family Court was not justified in reversing the decree of the Family Court, whereby respondent No. 1's suit for the recovery of above amount was dismissed. His further submission is that the learned Judge in Chambers could not have non-suited the petitioner on the ground of laches.

3. Since the Appellate Family Court was competent to decide the question, whether the petitioner had paid the above dower amount to respondent No. 1, the learned Judge in Chambers could not have interfered, with the aforesaid finding of fact in exercise of his Constitutional jurisdiction in the absence of misreading or non-reading of evidence. Admittedly the petitioner was unable to produce any document to prove the factum of payment of above amount to respondent No.1. It is true that the learned Judge in Chambers has referred to the factum that after the judgment of the Appellate Family Court, the petitioner invoked the Constitutional jurisdiction of the High Court after the lapse of about 1 year, but even on merits, the petitioner had no case for pressing in aid the Constitutional jurisdiction. The impugned order of the learned Judge in Chambers does not suffer from any infirmity. Leave is refused.

A.A./M-3014/S Leave refused.