Mst. SHAHIDA BEGUM AND OTHERS vs GHULAM RASUL
This petition challenges a judgment of the Lahore High Court, Rawalpindi Bench, which remanded a case to the Additional District Judge, Attock, for a decision on merits. The petitioner argued that the High Court erred by not dismissing the Regular Second Appeal (R.S.A.) due to an alleged deficiency in court-fee, asserting that the fee paid was based on an undervaluation of the subject matter. The Supreme Court observed that the Additional District Judge had previously dismissed numerous appeals, including the one in question, based on a specific interpretation regarding the applicability of a Punjab Government Notification dated 4-2-1980, without addressing other issues like court-fee. The High Court had already set aside the Additional District Judge's consolidated judgment in a related matter (Abdul Ghafoor v. Muhammad Rafagat). Consequently, the High Court remanded the present appeal to be decided on merits, including the determination of the appropriate court-fee. The Supreme Court found the High Court's order of remand to be legally sound and unexceptionable, thereby dismissing the petition.
- Can a High Court remand an appeal for a decision on merits when the lower appellate court dismissed it solely on a preliminary legal point without addressing other issues like court-fee?
- Is a consolidated judgment by an appellate court that fails to address individual intrinsic objections, such as court-fee, liable to be set aside and remanded?
ORDER
' MIAN BURHANUDDIN KHAN, J.-This petition is directed against the judgment of Lahore High Court, Rawalpindi Bench, dated 15-6-1983 passed in R. S. A. No, 77 of 1983.
2. Present petition relates to the matter of court-fee payable on the R. S. A. Accepted by the impugned order. The main contention of the learned counsel for the petitioner is that the court-fee paid on the appeal was undervalue i,e, instead of court-fee on Rs, 60,000 court-fee was affixed at a value of Rs, 18,000 and for this reason alone the R. S. A. Should have been dismissed by the learned High Court Judge. We have considered the contention raised by the learned counsel and find that the learned Judge of the High Court considered that the order passed by the learned Additional District Judge, Attock was based on the question as regards the applicability of the Punjab Government's Notification, dated 4-2-1980 which the learned Additional District Judge felt was not applicable and dismissed a large A number of appeals including the appeal out of which the present petition arises without going into other intrinsic objections such as court-fee payable on each appeal and the judgment of the learned Additional District. Judge was a 'consolidated judgment relating to 46 appeals, which was set aside by the same High Court in C. R. 37;1983. Re : Abdul Ghafoor v. Muhammad Rafagat , decided by the Rawalpindi Bench on 27-4-1983. In these circumstances it was held by the learned High Court. Judge that the appeal' in question also be remanded to be decided alongwith other matters regarding court-fee on merits. Hence, the impugned order is unexceptionable and this petition is, accordingly, dismissed. PLD 1983 Lab. 3831 1