Setting an example: LHC declares decision in favour of judge illegal

Judge overrules order to enlist senior colleague’s membership to housing society

LAHORE: A judge of the Lahore High Court set an example by taking a decision against his more senior colleague by declaring a Cooperative Housing Society decision in his favour as illegal.

Justice Ibarur Rehman Lodhi declared an order issued by Circle Registrar (Housing) Nisar Ahmed, who is now serving as Sheikhupura district officer, as illegal.

The CR directed Cooperative Model Town Society to enlist Justice Abdul Sami Khan as a member for owning a two-kanal residential plot in the scheme.

However, CMTS informed registrar of the Cooperative Housing Society that the judge purchased the plot from a man who was not the actual owner. Therefore, the judge could not be granted membership.

Justice Lodhi is junior to Justice Sami in the LHC. He passed the order on a petition filed by Jalaluddin Muhammad Akbar, Ghulam Moinuddin Javed and Sajid Arif Nomani, who claimed to be the real owners of the plot.

Justice Lodhi, in his seven-page order, ruled the CR had passed the order by reopening a matter which had already been decided by his superior, the registrar. He concluded that the CR was not competent to reopen the matter and proceeded in an entirely different direction to his senior officer.

On March 31, 2015, Justice Ijazul Ahsan, now a judge of Supreme Court, had issued a stay order, stopping CMTS from enlisting Justice Sami as a member.

The petitioners, through Advocate Ahmed Awais, stated that Justice Sami had allegedly agreed to purchase the property from a land grabber. The petitioners said they were the legal heirs of the late Shehzadi Badshah Begum, who, being a refugee claimant, had been allotted an eight-kanal bungalow on November 18, 1959. The petitioners also claimed they were in possession of the land.

Justice Sami, through an advocate, claimed to have the possession of the disputed property. However, Justice Lodhi ruled that according to CMTS records, the petitioners were members of the society and among the seven people in possession of the disputed property.

Advocate Ahmed Awais contended that according to the society’s bylaws, no transaction over the sale or purchase of property could be made without obtaining a no-objection certificate (NoC). He pointed out to the judge that an NOC had not been issued by the society.

Advocate Awais told the court that Kamran Sarfraz, a land grabber, had forged the sale deed of two kanals of the property for Rs2 million. He said that on June 25, 2014, Sarfraz apparently sold the land to Justice Abdul Sami Khan for Rs6 million per kanal. He added the actual price of the land is many times higher.

On September 9, 2014, Justice Khan filed an application with the CMTS secretary, asking for membership to the society. Advocate Awais said that on December 29 of the same year, the society management replied to the judge, saying, “You have apparently purchased the plots Kamran Sarfraz, son of Sarfraz Khan, who is not an owner/member of the said property.”

Awais said Justice Sami had then filed an application with the Cooperative Housing Society registrar, requesting him to direct the CMTS secretary to list him as a member.

He said the society management later told the registrar that Sarfraz was neither owner of the land nor a member of the society. On December 2, 2014, the registrar observed that he had no jurisdiction to deal with the matter, Awais said.

However, the registrar had ordered the society to decide the application of Justice Khan within two weeks. Awais said that on February 26, 2015, on another application of the judge, the circle registrar directed the society to list Justice Khan as a member. The counsel said the circle registrar lacked the authority to pass such an order. He accused the circle registrar of pressuring the society to cancel the petitioners’ membership.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 24^th, 2016.