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 ownership and distribution of property.
In a written order written by Justice Musarrat Hilali, the court questioned why the government and the ombudsman had appealed when the private parties themselves had remained silent.
The SC held that the mediator acts as a judge and not as a party, and cannot defend her decisions in higher courts. As a quasi-judicial institution, the Ombudsman cannot become an interested party in such matters and must remain neutral.
The court further ruled that the KP government was neither an heir to the property nor personally affected by the decision.
Therefore, neither the government nor the ombudsman had the legal capacity to appeal. However, the rights of the original applicants to appeal remain unaffected.
The dispute concerned ownership and distribution of property between Shabbir Khan and other private parties. The KP Ombudsman ruled on the matter under the Women’s Property Act, 2019. However, the Peshawar High Court (PHC) set aside the Ombudsman’s decision, ruling that it exceeded her jurisdiction.
