ABDUL GHAFFAR vs MUHAMMAD SHARIF AND ANOTHER
This matter concerns a challenge to a decision by the Member, Board of Revenue, which classified a respondent in unauthorized possession of land as a "tenant" by invoking paragraph 480 of the Colony Manual, thereby rendering him eligible for the 15-year Lease Scheme. The petitioner challenged this classification, arguing that the provisions of paragraph 480 of the Colony Manual were inapplicable to the facts and circumstances of the case, as they were intended to address an entirely different situation. Upon review, the Supreme Court found prima facie merit in the petitioner's contention that the legal provision was misapplied. Consequently, the Court granted leave to appeal to examine whether the unauthorized occupant could legally be treated as a tenant under the cited regulatory framework. The appeal was ordered to be prepared on the existing record, with liberty granted to the parties to submit further documentation.
- Can a person in unauthorized possession of land be classified as a tenant under paragraph 480 of the Colony Manual?
- Does paragraph 480 of the Colony Manual apply to individuals in unauthorized possession of land for the purpose of eligibility under the 15-year Lease Scheme?
- Paragraph 480, Colony Manual
ORDER
1. ' NASIM HASAN SHAH, J.-The question, which arose before the learned Member Board of Revenue, was whether the respondent, who was in unauthorised possession of the land, could be treated as a "tenant" by giving him the benefit of the provisions of para. 480 of the Colony Manual?
2. The learned Member, Board of Revenue decided to do so and by applying the provisions of para. 480 of the Colony Manual treated him as a tenant and, therefore, eligible under the 15 years Lease Scheme.
3. ' Ch. Muhammad Hasan, learned counsel for the petitioner, submits that the provisions of para. 480 of the Colony Manual dealt with entirely different situation and had no application in the facts and circumstance of this case.
4. ' Prima facie there is force in this submission. . Security in the sum of Rs, 1,000.
5. ' The appeal shall be made ready on the present record with liberty to the parties to add further documents, if any.