Islamabad: The Supreme Court on Monday directed the assistant commissioners of Pasrur and Gujrat to make a detailed search for the land records relating to forest department property, observing that disappearance of an official file was not a routine matter and the officials should take the issue seriously.
A two-member bench headed by Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail heard the case concerning forest department land in Sialkot and Gujrat.
Additional Advocate General Punjab Sanaullah Zahid informed the court that both assistant commissioners had appeared before it pursuant to the Supreme Court’s order.
Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail asked whether the two officers had also brought the relevant land records with them.
The Assistant Commissioner Pasrur said the record had been searched for at the assistant commissioner’s office but could not be found, adding that the Deputy Commissioner’s Office had been approached for the record.
The Additional Advocate General Punjab submitted that the Punjab government’s position was that no action had been taken, adding that even if the assistant commissioner wanted to take action, he did not have the authority to do so.
Justice Jamal Khan Mandokhail remarked that records often went missing where something had to be denied.
Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan observed that the matter was not so simple and directed that the record be searched for thoroughly. ‘What would ordinary people know about whether an officer has the authority to take action or not?’ he remarked.
He further observed that disappearance of a file was not a routine matter, adding that an official could hide a file if he wanted to.
Justice Naeem Akhtar Afghan told the officials not to treat the matter lightly, saying that it should not happen that a single official started playing with the entire system.
The court directed both assistant commissioners to search for the land records and adjourned the hearing indefinitely.
The Supreme Court is hearing a dispute involving 85 acres of forest department land in Pasrur and 666 kanals in Gujrat. The Punjab government has challenged the High Court’s orders before the Supreme Court.