Islamabad:
The Supreme Court has judged that the right to a fair trial is a fundamental right under article 10-A of the Constitution, stressing that the regular procedure must be maintained at all levels of governance and arbitration.
“A regular procedure is a prerequisite which must be respected at all strata. The right to a fair hearing and a fair trial requires that no one is penalized by the overwhelming decision and distressing their rights or legitimate expectations, unless it has a fair chance of responding and an equitable opportunity to explain / present the case, “observed an exposure to 11 pages between individuals and judge Muhamma evacuated Trust Property Board (ETPB).
The judgment stressed that each citizen benefits from the inalienable right to the protection of the law and to be dealt with in accordance with him.
“The ease of article 4 of the Constitution is to attribute and integrate the doctrine of equality before the law or equal protection of the law, and no action prejudging the life and freedom of any person can be taken without regular procedure,” he noted.
He also observed that “the principles of natural justice require that the offender be offered on the right opportunity to converge, explain and challenge before he was found guilty and condemned”.
The bench stressed that the principles of natural justice and equity are anchored in the philosophy of the supply of a hearing right before any harmful action is taken.
“In our Constitution, the right to a fair trial has also become a fundamental right under article 10-A. The principle of natural justice is based on the trick and the clear of the supply of a public right before any prejudicial action is taken, it is therefore an essential obligation of all the judicial, the judiciary and the administrative authorities, “said Verdict.
According to the case file, the petitioners managed a company under the name and style of M / S. Yamin & Company. The disputed property – an open space measuring 16,481.35 square feet located in the districts of Wadhomal Odharam, Karachi – was acquired by the petitioners in 1974 by auction.
The possession was given in two phases: 13,778 square feet in 1978, and the remaining 2,706 square feet in 1982. An act of 99 years was performed on March 28, 1992.
The lease had been executed by ETPB, the government of Pakistan, through its assistant administrator in Karachi, in accordance with a letter of approval published by ETPB on November 20, 1991.
However, on September 17, 2020, the respondent n ° 6 published a notice of cancellation, alleging that the lease in favor of the petitioners was “false and false”. The petitioners responded to the cancellation and a notice of justification, but said they were then threatened with dispossession.
Without any rapid or appropriate legal recourse under the 1975 law on the property of the Evacuee Trust trust (management and elimination), in particular article 14, the petitioners have filed a constitutional request aimed at canceling the cancellation notice.
However, the high court of the Sindh rejected its request.
