Law: West Pakistan Family Courts Act, 1964

Section: 3, 4

  West Pakistan Family Courts Act (XXXV of 1964) Ss. 3 & 4-Section 4 does not provide that a Judge under Act should be a Muslim-A non-Muslim may well be a Judge for purposes of Act. The West Pakistan Family Courts Act, 1964, provides the forum for the trial of the suit and the qualification of the Judge who can try it vide sections 3 and 4 of the Act. Whereas the former provides for the establish ment of Family Courts the latter, gives .qualifications of a Judge, namely that he is or has been a District Judge, an Additional District Judge or a Civil Judge. It is not provided that the Judge should be a Muslim. This qualification cannot be read into the section, therefore. it is not open to go beyond the statutory provision and look for any other qualification. It is an error to hold that the Judge should be a person professing Islam; though without doubt be occupies the position akin to that of a Qazi since he could effect a divorce on any ground, on which it could be granted under the Muslim Law. The emphasis is on the functions which are alike and not that that the judge should only profess Islam. Date of hearing: 22nd October 1973.                                                                                                                      JUGEMENT MUHAMMAD HALEEM, J.---By this petition, the petitioner has impugned the order dated 17th March 1973, of the Additional District Judge, Karachi, by which he remanded the case to be retried by a Muslim Judge. 2. In brief, the facts are that the petitioner married respondent No. I in April 1957, at Khanewal, District Multan, and agreed to pay prompt dower amounting to Rs. 1,035. They resided at Khanewal and later shifted to Karachi. After- eight years of the wedlock the petitioner, it is alleged, maltreated her; and once he even took her to her parents' house to leave her there but on the intervention of the…