GHULAM ABBAS vs AJMAL SHAH and others
This matter arises from a petition for leave to appeal filed by a defendant against the dismissal of his civil revision by the High Court. The core legal question concerns whether a counsel and a co-petitioner possess the authority to make a binding offer to resolve a property dispute on special oath, which subsequently led to the dismissal of the revision. The Supreme Court held that the petitioner's counsel, duly appointed via power of attorney, and the co-petitioner—who shared no conflict of interest—acted competently and without any motive against the petitioner's interests, rendering the subsequent challenge an afterthought. The petition for leave to appeal was accordingly refused.
- Whether a counsel has the authority to make a binding offer for the disposal of a civil revision on a special oath on behalf of the client?
- Can a co-petitioner make an offer to resolve a property dispute on oath that binds another petitioner sharing no conflict of interest?
- Whether the dismissal of a civil revision based on an accepted offer of a special oath can be successfully challenged as unauthorized?
ORDER
1. ' MUHAMMAD AFZAL ZULLAH, J.-- Leave to appeal has been sought by a defendant in a suit for declaration in a property dispute, against the dismissal of his civil revision by the High Court.
2. ' Two real brothers including the petitioner had filed a civil revision in the High Court. During its hearing one of them namely, Ajmal Shah made an offer that 'in case Muhammad Nawaz son of Mst. Bano, deceased respondent, stated on oath of the Holy Qur'an that the mutation of gift did not take place or that Mst. Bano did not participate when the mutation was sanctioned, then their revision petition may be dismissed".
3. ' This statement of Ajmal Shah and similar statement of the learned counsel representing the petitioners before the High Court was then recorded. Said Muhammad Nawaz accepted the offer and made the proposed oath. Relevant statements were separately recorded and the revision was accordingly, dismissed.
4. ' Only one of the two petitioners before the High Court has sought leave to appeal.
5. ' His learned counsel has contended that the petitioner had not made any offer, and that although the learned Advocate who made the statement before the High Court, was duly appointed by the petitioner also as his counsel, he had no authority to make any such offer on the basis of which the civil revision was disposed of.
6. He has relied upon the contents of the power of attorney submitted in the High Court.
7. ' After hearing the learned counsel, we are satisfied that there was no clash of interest between Ghulam Abbas, the present petitioner, and Ajmal Shah, his brother; who made the statement before the High Court. Nor there is any material to indicate that the learned counsel appearing for both of them in the B High Court had any motive to go against the interests of the petitioner.
8. ' The position taken by the petitioner in this Court appears to be an afterthought. Otherwise an application for review could have been filed before the High Court. Be that as it may, we have examined the contents of the power of attorney also. It does not support the contention of the learned counsel.
9. ' Leave to appeal, accordingly, is refused.