PESHAWAR, Oct 15: Allowing a writ petition regarding five-decade-old dispute over certain properties of the former Chitral state’s wali, the Peshawar High Court has remanded the case to the Aala Ilaqa Qazi (senior civil judge) Chitral.

The petition was filed by Chiragh Hussain and other legal heirs of Abdur Razak Pasha, who was given landed property by the then mehtar, Sir Shujaul Mulk, after the wali gave his sister in marriage to Mr Pasha.

The opponent party include Begum Shehzadi Usman, daughter of the mehtar, her husband, Mohammad Usman and her other legal heirs, claiming that the property in dispute were gifted to her by the mehtar, Sir Muzzafarul Mulk, after these properties were confiscated when the petitioner (Chiragh Hussain) was found involved in a plot of poisoning the mehtar.

A two-member bench of the high court comprising Justice Ijaz Afzal and Justice Dost Mohammad declared that as the forums provided under the defunct laws of Provincially Administered Tribal Areas (Pata) Regulations No-1 and No-2 of 1969 and 1975 respectively no longer exist, therefore, the issue should be decided by the Alla Ilaqa Qazi Chitral afresh in accordance with law within one year.

Advocate Qazi Mohammad Anwar represented the petitioners, whereas Yahya Afridi appeared for the respondents. The court ruled that the record indicated that this case never received judicial treatment at any level of hierarchy functioning under the “Riwaj” or the law germane thereto. It always fell prey to the administrative exigencies, the court observed.

The case has seen various ups and down since 1946. The facts of the case are that the property in dispute being the ownership of Sir Shujaul Mulk, mehtar of the state of chitral, was given to Abdur Razzaq pasha, which on his death descended on the petitioners (legal heirs) and remained in their possession till 1946. One of the petitioner, Syed Chiragh Hussain, was exiled from the state because of his alleged involvement in a plot of poisoning the then mehtar, Sir Muzzafarul Mulk and the property so given thereto was confiscated. Thereafter the said property was allegedly gifted to Begum Mohammad usman.

On the death of Sir Muzzafarul Mulk, Syed Chiragh Hussain came back and claimed the property by pleading that he was innocent. The board of administration functioning under the chairmanship of the additional political agent sent the case of the petitioners to the political agent, Malakand who in turn ordered it to be decided by the local judicial council.

Before any verdict could be given by the judicial council, Mohammad Usman with his wife fled to Afghanistan and in consequence the land was retrieved to the petitioners in 1951.

On the return of Mohammad Usman with his wife in 1953, the NWFP governor ordered them to be put in the same position in which they were before their departure to Afghanistan and that if they had any dispute with any private citizen of Chitral, that should be decided by the concerned judicial council on its merits. The claim of the petitioners found acceptance in the order of the additional political agent on Aug 17, 1954, and thereto the property was restored to them. In 1976, Mohammad Usman filed a writ petition in the high court which was decided in 1980 with the direction to the deputy commissioner to decide the matter in accordance with law.

The deputy commissioner ignored certain findings of the high court while deciding the issue on Jan 11, 1982. The appeal against the said order was filed by the respondents, which was accepted by the court of additional commissioner Malakand. The revision petition of the petitioners was accepted by  the additional secretary home the NWFP on July 9, 1985, following which the respondents again moved the high court. The case was remanded back to the additional secretary, who decided it in favour of Mohammad Usman and others in 1998. Finally, the instant petition was filed by the petitioners.