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Applications under Section 12(2) must be filed before the Court that passed the Final Judgment --- Lahore High Court dismissed Civil Revision being filed in the Wrong Forum and lacked Merit --- Lahore High Court, Lahore

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Islamabad 07-12-2024: In a significant ruling, the Lahore High Court, Multan Bench, dismissed a Civil Revision [C.R. No. 574 of 2024] filed by Ghulam Fareed, challenging the dismissal of his application under Section 12(2) of the Civil Procedure Code (C.P.C.) by the Additional District Judge. The case centered on a land possession dispute and alleged fraud in the underlying decree.

The dispute arose over a 14-marla property in Mauza Shah Jamal, Tehsil and District Muzaffargarh. Muhammad Bilal, the Respondent, filed a suit for possession in 1994, claiming ownership through a registered sale deed. The Petitioner contested the claim, asserting ownership through a mutation and challenging the respondent’s sale deed as fraudulent.

The suit was initially dismissed by the Civil Judge in 1997, but the decision was reversed by the Additional District Judge in 1998. The Lahore High Court upheld the reversal in 2015, a decision left undisturbed by the Supreme Court after the Petitioner withdrew his appeal in 2020.

The Petitioner subsequently filed an application under Section 12(2) C.P.C. before the Additional District Judge, which was dismissed as time-barred and non-maintainable. This prompted the Petitioner to file the current revision petition, seeking relief from the Lahore High Court.

Mr. Justice Muzamil Akhtar Shabir dismissed the revision, reiterating several key legal principles:

Applications under Section 12(2) must be filed before the Court that passed the final judgment. The Lahore High Court held that the final judgment in this case was delivered by it in 2015, as the Supreme Court of Pakistan had refused to entertain the appeal (Province of Punjab Vs. Muhammad Irshad Bajwa) (1999 SCMR 1555).
The Court emphasized that when the Supreme Court of Pakistan refuses leave to appeal, the Lahore High Court judgment remains final for the purposes of Section 12(2) C.P.C. (Khawaja Muhammad Yousaf Vs. Federal Government) (1999 SCMR 1516).
Registered sale deeds hold a presumption of truth and take precedence over mutations (Rasool Bakhsh Vs. Muhammad Ramzan) (2007 SCMR 85).
The Court rejected the Petitioner’s argument that fresh litigation could be initiated after the final decision of higher forums, emphasizing the need to uphold judicial finality and efficiency.
Although the application was found to be time-barred, the Court prioritized the issue of non-maintainability due to improper forum selection.

The Lahore High Court dismissed the Civil Revision, holding that the application under Section 12(2) C.P.C. was filed in the wrong forum and lacked merit. Mr. Justice Muzamil Akhtar Shabir found no jurisdictional defect, illegality, or misreading of evidence in the impugned order.