Law:

Section:

Islamic law---
----Inheritance---Brothers depriving their sisters of their inheritance---Inheritance Mutation of deceased included his daughters---Counsel for the brothers submitted that then deceased had in his lifetime gifted some cash and gave dowry to his daughters, therefore, the daughters should have been excluded from the Inheritance Mutation and from inheriting the estate of the deceased---Validity---Such contention on behalf of the brothers was completely against the Shariah and the law of Pakistan---Present case was yet another classic case of brothers' depriving their sisters of their inheritance, and did so for decades---Frivolous litigation initiated by them was undoubtedly encouraged by the fact that substantial costs were not imposed on them for putting forward an untenable claim---And, because the revenue authorities were not directed to ensure that the shares of all the legal heirs were recorded and no legal heir was deprived of his/her share---Brothers deprived their sisters' share in the inheritance of their father and filed a baseless case and then dragged it out over decades, which had eventually come before the Supreme Court---Precious court time had been wasted---It was intolerable to deprive vulnerable persons and females of their legal rights---Present petition should never have been filed because it proposed to undo Shariah and law---Petitioners (brothers) had retained possession of the daughters' share in the subject land--Petition for leave to appeal was dismissed with costs in the sum of five hundred thousand rupees, to be paid by the petitioners, with the directions that they should deposit the same with the concerned revenue authority within three months and such authority shall distribute the same amongst those who had been deprived; that if the said amount was not deposited it shall be recovered as arrears of land revenue and distributed in like manner; that the revenue authorities shall ensure that the estate of deceased was distributed amongst all his legal heirs in accordance with their shares prescribed by Shariah.

ORDER
Qazi Faez Isa, CJ. The learned counsel for the petitioners states that Shah Jehan died on 17 August 1988 and after his death Inheritance Mutation No. 1164, which was attested on 31 July 1997 and recorded in the revenue records. The Inheritance Mutation included the daughters of Shah Jehan. Learned counsel submits that Shah Jehan had in his lifetime gifted some cash and gave dowry to his daughters, therefore, his daughters should have been excluded from the Inheritance Mutation and from inheriting Shah Jehan's estate.

2.    The petitioners filed a suit assailing the said Inheritance Mutation and sought to exclude the daughters of Shah Jehan. The suit was dismissed on 15 September 2010. Not being satisfied with the dismissal of the suit, the petitioners filed an appeal which was dismissed on 25 January 2011. The petitioners continued to challenge the daughters right to inheritance and the Inheritance Mutation by filing a civil revision against the two current decisions of the subordinate courts, which were upheld, and through the impugned judgment the civil revision was dismissed on 23 April 2012.

3.    Upon our query as to who is in possession of the daughters' share in the subject land the learned counsel stated that the petitioners have retained its possession. Upon our further query whether the petitioners contention accords with Islamic Shariah, the learned counsel stated that the courts had not attended to the fact that Shah Jehan had made the said gifts to his daughters, therefore, they were excluded from his estate. This novel proposition is completely against the Shariah and the law of Pakistan.