ISLAMABAD:
The Supreme Court has dismissed as inadmissible appeals filed by the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (KP) government and the KP Women’s Ombudsman in a dispute over property ownership and distribution.
In a written order written by Justice Musarrat Hilali, the court questioned why the government and the ombudsman filed appeals when the private parties themselves had remained silent.
The TS held that the Ombudsman acts as a judge, not as a party, and cannot defend its decisions before higher courts. As a quasi-judicial institution, the ombudsman cannot become an affected party in such matters and must remain neutral.
The court further ruled that the KP government was neither heir to the property nor was it personally affected by the decision.
Therefore, neither the government nor the Ombudsman had the legal capacity to file an appeal. However, the rights of the original property claimants to file an appeal are not affected.
The dispute concerned the ownership and distribution of assets between Shabbir Khan and other private parties. The KP Women’s Ombudsman decided the case under the Women’s Property Act, 2019. However, the Peshawar High Court (PHC) overturned the ombudsman’s decision, ruling that it exceeded jurisdiction.
