JAWWAD S. KHAWAJA, J.---The petitioner impugns the orders of the learned forums below. The petitioner's plaint has been rejected for the reason given in para 5 of the order of the trial Court dated 29-4-2008. For convenience the said paragraph is reproduced as under:-- "The relationship in between the applicant/defendant and the respondent/plaintiff is that of master and servant. The applicant/defendant is a statutory body and in case of dispute in between the master and servant the appropriate forum is Federal Service Tribunal and not the civil court. This court lacks jurisdiction. The application is accepted and consequently the plaint is returned. The file of this Court be consigned to the record room after preparation."
2. Learned counsel for the respondent-bank was unable to defend the aforesaid order and acknowledged that it was self-contradictory. It is clear that once the relationship between the petitioner and the respondent bank was held to be that of master and servant, the petitioner's plaint could not have been rejected on the ground that the appropriate forum in the matter was the Federal Service Tribunal. In any event, the claim which is being agitated by the petitioner through his civil suit is not based on his terms and conditions of service. We are thus clear that the plaint filed by the petitioner was wrongly rejected by the trial Court and the petitioner's approach to the higher forums was also wrongly declined.
3. In view of the foregoing circumstances, the impugned order as well as the order of the trial Court dated 29-4-2008 are set aside. The petitioner's suit shall be deemed to be pending before the trial Court. Since both the sides are represented, they are directed to appear before the learned Senior Civil Judge Lahore on 4-6-2011 so that the petitioner's suit can be resurrected and dealt with in accordance with law This petition is converted into appeal and allowed.