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Gifts cannot be used to bypass Legal Heirs, and Transactions made under Undue Influence or Prolonged Distress are Voidable --- Lahore High Court, Lahore

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Gifts cannot be used to bypass Legal Heirs, and Transactions made under Undue Influence or Prolonged Distress are Voidable --- Lahore High Court, Lahore

Islamabad 14-03-2025: In a landmark ruling, the Lahore High Court (LHC) has dismissed a petition challenging the concurrent findings of lower Courts in a case involving a disputed gift mutation (Hiba). The Petitioner claimed ownership of ancestral property through a gift mutation allegedly sanctioned by his deceased father in 1999. However, the Respondent successfully contested the claim, arguing that the father never gifted the property and that the mutation was fraudulently obtained.

The Court ruled that Islamic law permits gifts (Hiba) but prohibits unjust exclusion of heirs. Citing Surah An-Nisa (4:11) of the Quran, the judgment reaffirmed that gifts must not be used to deprive rightful heirs. The Petitioner’s claim was deemed invalid as it sought to circumvent Islamic inheritance rules.

The Court found no substantial evidence to support the Petitioner’s claim that the father disinherited the daughter due to her marriage. The alleged resentment occurred in 1980, while the mutation was recorded in 1999, raising serious doubts about its legitimacy. Moreover, the father’s participation in the daughter’s second marriage in 1981 contradicted claims of estrangement.

Applying Section 16 of the Contract Act, 1872, the Court held that any gift made under undue influence or prolonged distress is voidable. If anger or resentment lasted for 19 years, it indicated a state of continuous distress, rendering the transaction questionable.

The Court observed that the Petitioner failed to produce a key witness (Yaseen) who allegedly witnessed the mutation. Under Article 129(g) of the Qanun-e-Shahadat Order, 1984, this omission warranted an adverse inference, further weakening the Petitioner’s case.

The Lahore High Court upheld the Appellate and Trial Court findings, emphasizing that it does not interfere with concurrent judgments unless there is misreading of evidence, procedural impropriety, or jurisdictional defects. As the petitioner failed to establish any such grounds, the civil revision petition was dismissed.

Mr. Justice Anwaar Hussain ruled that the gift mutation was invalid and the lower Courts were correct in decreeing the suit in favor of the respondent. The petition was dismissed, ensuring the Respondent’s rightful inheritance under Islamic law and statutory legal provisions.