2022 PLP 749 (MLD)

MUSARRAT HILALI, J.

The petitioner in this petition filed under Section 115 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, has called in question the vires of Judgment and Decree dated 25.06.2020 passed by the learned District Judge Tank whereby the learned court while dismissing the application for condonation of delay, dismissed his appeal filed against Judgment and Decree dated 17.03.2020 of learned Civil Judge-I, Tank, being time barred.

2. Concise facts of the case are that the petitioner filed a declaratory suit seeking rectification of his date of birth recorded in the record of National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA), Tank. Defendant/NADRA filed written statement and after processing the suit in accordance with the procedure, the learned trial Court dismissed the same vide Judgment and Decree dated 17.03.2020. Aggrieved of the dismissal decree, petitioner/ plaintiff preferred an appeal before the leaned District Judge Tank along with an application to condone the delay in filing of appeal. However, the learned District Judge Tank vide order dated 25.06.2020 rejected the application for condonation of delay and consequently dismissed the appeal of petitioner. Hence, this Civil Revision by the petitioner.

3. Arguments heard and record gone through.

4. It is clear from the perusal of record that the appeal of petitioner/plaintiff was dismissed by the learned District Judge Tank only due to technical reason being filed beyond the scope of period provided for filing an appeal in the Limitation Act, 1908. Learned counsel for petitioner/ plaintiff argued that the delay was because of emergency owing to Covid-19 pandemic and it was not deliberate or intentional. This submission of the learned counsel for petitioner constitute a sufficient reason to condone the delay particularly in view of the provisions of Section 30 of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Epidemic Control and Emergency Relief Act, 2020, which provides that, "Notwithstanding anything contained in the Limitation Act, 1908 (Act No. IX of 1908) or any other law prescribing limitation for initiating any legal proceedings, the limitation period provided under various laws shall remain frozen from 13' March 2020 till the culmination of the emergency period and the proceedings so filed before any Court or tribunal during or immediately upon cessation of such emergency period, shall not be time-barred on account of any delay for the aforesaid period."

5. There is no denial of the fact that Covid-19 pandemic still exists in this Province and the emergency is not yet over. Also, there is no cavil with the proposition that during the entire 2020, such pandemic was at peak level, and thus, provisions of the ibid Act are fully applicable to the present lis. The word "shall' used by legislature in the above extracted provision of law makes it mandatory and hence, there was even no need to file a separate application dated 04.06.2020 for the condonation of delay.

6. Even otherwise, according to Section 12 of the Limitation Act, 1908, in computing the period of limitation prescribed for an appeal, the day on which the judgment complained of was pronounced, and the time requisite for obtaining a copy of the decree, appealed from or sought to be reviewed, shall be excluded. The original record of appellate court, requisitioned by this Court, reflects that the petitioner/plaintiff applied for certified copies of the Judgment/Decree dated 17.03.2020 on the same day through Application No.822. Copies become ready for delivery on 04.06.2020, and accordingly delivered to petitioner on the same days and finally the appeal was filed on 04.06.2020, and as such, after excluding the time spent in obtaining certified copies, the appeal of petitioner was well within time and there was no delay of even a single day in filing the appeal.

7. Keeping the provisions of section 30 of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Epidemic Control and Emergency Relief Act 2020 and Section 12 of the Limitation Act, 1908 in view, I while allowing this Civil Revision, set aside the impugned order of learned District Judge Tank, accept the application for condonation of delay and treat the appeal as filed within time by condoning the delay so occurred in filing of appeal. Consequently, the appeal is remanded back to the learned appellate court to decide the same on merits in accordance with law. Parties are, however, left to bear their own cost. SA/39/P Case remanded.