DORAB PATEL, J.-In all these petitions, the petitioners have challenged the validity of the orders passed against them under the Karachi Control of Disorderly Persons Act, 1952 (hereafter called the said Act) on the ground that the said Act is an invalid piece of legislation. Counsel for all the petitioners have conceded that they wish to press their petitions on the sole ground that the said Act is no longer valid or in force, therefore, it is not necessary to discuss the facts of each petition and we shall dispose of all the petitions by this judgment.
2. In order to appreciate the arguments of learned counsel, it is necessary to set out the history' of the said Act. The said Act was promulgated on the 28th of April 1952 by the Central Government when Karachi was the Federal Capital and section 1 of the said Act stated :-
1. (1) This Act may be called the Karachi Control of Disorderly Persons Act, 1952.
(2) It shall come into force at once, and shall continue in force for five years. By Ordinance II of 1957 the Central Government amended subsection (2) quoted above, deleted the words "for five years" and substituted them by "up to and inclusive of 30 April 1962". This Ordinance was approved in due course by the National Assembly and received the President's assent as Act No. XXX of 1957.
Thus the said Act was valid up to 30th April 1962. On the 30th April 1962, during the pendency of Martial Law, the Governor of West Pakistan promulgated Ordinance XV of 1962 by which subsec-- tion (2) of section 1 of the said Act was again amended, so that the figure `1962' was deleted and substituted by the figure `1963'. In the result the Act was extended to 30th April 1963. On 30th April 1963 another Ordinance being Ordinance No. VII of 1963 was promulgated by the Governor, whereby the figure `1963' in subsection (2) of section 1 of the said Act was deleted and substituted by the figure `1964'. As the Constitution had come into force by this the this Ordinance was placedth for approval before the Provincial Assembly and was duly approved with the result that the Act was valid up to 30th April 1964. Thereafter by Ordinance II of 1964 dated the 19th April 1964, subsection
(2) of section 1 of the said Act was amended so as to extend its life up to 30th April 1965. By Ordinance IV of 1965 dated the 17th April 1965, subsection (2) of section 1 of the said Act was amended so as to extend its life up to 30th April 1966 the said subsection (2) was amended so as to extend the said Act up to 30th April 1967. All these amend--ing Ordinances were approved by the Provincial Assembly. In the result, subsection (2) of section 1 of the said Act stated: "It shall come into force at once, and shall continue up to 30th April 1967". Finally, by Ordinance No. VI of 1967, the Governor of West Pakistan again amended subsection (2) of section I of the said Act. By this amendment, the comma appearing after the word "at once" in the subsection was replaced by a full-stop and the words appearing thereafter were omitted so that the subsection merely stated :- "It shall come into force at once".
This Ordinance was approved by the Provincial Assembly and the said Act therefore became a permanent statute.
2. Learned counsel for the petitioners conceded that by virtue of the amendment of 1957 the said Act had been validly extended up to 30th April 1962. However, they submitted that Ordinance No. XV of 1962 which was promulgated by the Governor of West Pakistan was invalid because Karachi was then Federal territory, therefore it was ultra vires of the powers of the Governor. Alternatively they submitted that even if the Ordinance was validly promulgated, it had admittedly not been placed for approval before the Provincial Assembly within the prescribed period specified under Article 79 of the Constitution; therefore it had expired long before Ordinance No. VII of 1963 had been promulgated by the Governor to extend the said Act by one year. As an Ordinance cannot extend an Act that has expired learned-counsel submitted that from and after the expiry of the prescribed period from its promulgation in April 1962, the said Act was a dead piece of legislation, therefore all the orders passed against the petitioners under this dead piece of legislation were void.
3. As to the first argument advanced by learned counsel, we have observed that Karachi was the national capital and was part of Federal territory when the said Act was promulgated in 1948 (?)
However, in the events that happened, the capital was shifted, and by President's Order No. 9 of 1961, being the West Pakistan Administration (Merger of the Federal. Territory of Karachi) Order of 1961 issued in pursuance of the proclamation of the 7th October 1958, Karachi was to become part of the Province of West Pakistan from the appointed day, which was a date to be notified by the Central Government in the official Gazette. In exercise of the powers contained in this Order, by Notification in the official Gazette dated the 29th June 1961, the Central Government was pleased to appoint the first day on July 1961 as the date on which President's Order 9 of 1961 came into force, therefore as from 1st July 1961 Karachi became a Division of the Province of West Pakistan.
Ordinance No. XV of 1962 was promulgated by the Governor nearly one year after Karachi had become a part of West Pakistan, therefore the Governor was competent to enact the said Ordinance, and the argument of learned counsel is without merit.
4. We shall now examine learned counsel's submission that the Ordinance XV of 1962 expired because it had not been placed .For approval before the National Assembly udder Article 79 of the Constitution.
Article 79 of the Constitution states :.- "79. When the Governor of a Province has assented to, or is deemed to have assented to, a Bill passed by the Assembly of the Province, it shall become law and shall be called an Act of the Provincial Legislature of the Province,
79. (I) If, at a the when the Assembly of a Province stands dissolved or is not in session, the Governor of. The Province is satisfied that circumstances exist which render immediate legislation necessary, he may, subject to this Article, make and promulgate such Ordinances as the circumstances appear to him to require and any such Ordinance shall, subject to this Article, have the same force of law as an Act of the Provincial Legislature.
(2) An Ordinance made and promulgated under this Article shall, as soon as is practicable, be laid before the Assembly of the Province.
(3) If, before the expiration of the prescribed period, the Assembly of the Province, by resolution, approves of the Ordinance, the Ordinance shall be deemed to have become an Act of the Provincial Legislature, but if, before the expiration of the period, the Assembly of the Province, by resolution disapproves of the Ordinance, it shall cease to have effect, and shall be deemed to have been repealed upon the passing of the resolution.
(4) If the Assembly of the Province has not approved or has not disapproved of the Ordinance, and it has not been repealed by the Governor, before the expiration of the prescribed period, it shall cease to have effect, and shall be deemed to have been repealed, upon the expiration of that period.
(5) The power of the Governor of a Province to make laws by the making and promulgation of Ordinances under this Article extends only to the making of laws within the legislative com-- petence of the Legislature of the Province.
(6) In this Article, `the prescribed period', in relation to an Ordinance, means :-
(a) the period ending forty-to days after the first meeting of the Assembly of the Province following the promulgation of the Ordinance ; or
(b) the period ending one hundred and eighty days after the promulgation of the Ordinance, whichever is the shorter."
The Ordinance was admittedly not placed before the Provincial Assembly, therefore it is contend of that it had expired under sub-Article (6) quoted above cm the expiry of 142 days after its promulgation. However, the Ordinance vas promulgated during the pendency of Martial Law. The Ordinance itself states, "Now, therefore, in pursuance of the Presidential Proclama--tion of the seventh day of October 1958, and having received the previous instructions of the President the Governor of West Pakistan is pleased in exercise of all powers enabling him in that behalf, to make and promulgate the following Ordi--nance".- The Constitution of 1956 had been abrogated by Martial Law and no Legislatures were in existence when this Ordinance was promulgated, therefore there was no constitutional requirement that the Ordinances should be placed for approved before any Legislature. It is also conceded that by virtue of the laws (Con--tinuance in Force) Order, 1958 the Ordinance was validly promulgated. The contention however is that it should have been placed for approval under the provisions of Article 79 of the Constitution quoted above but this is not correct because the provisions of the Constitution were prospective and not retros--pective. As the. Ordinance was validly enacted, it could no subsequently be invalidated by the provisions of Article 79 of the Constitution.
Additionally, the validity of all Ordinance promulgated during Martial Law was explicitly saved by the provisions of Article 225 of the Constitution. Article 225 in s far as it is relevant states as follows :- "225 (1) Except as provided by this Article all existing laws shall, subject to this Constitution, continue in force, so far as applicable and with the necessary adaptations, until altered, repealed or amended by the appropriate Legislature.
(2) The Presidential Proclamation made on the seventh day or October one thousand nine hundred and fifty-eight, is revoked with effect as from the commencing day, and the orders specified in the 'fable to this clause (and any orders amending those orders) are repealed with effect as from that day, but this clause , shall not affect any existing laws made under these orders.
Number Title No. 1 of 1958: The Laws (Continuance in Force) Order, 1958.
No. 2 of 1958: The Government,(Presidential Cabinet) Order, 1958.
No. 2 of 1959: The Legislative Powers Order, 1959.
No. 8 of 1959: The State Arrangements Order, 1959.
(7) In this Article; "existing laws" means all laws (including Ordinances, Orders-in-Council, Orders, rules, bye-laws, regula--tions and Letters Patent Constituting a High Court, and any notifications and other legal instruments having the force of law in force in Pakistan or any part of Pakistan, ' or having extra--territorial validity, immediately before the commencing day".
The Ordinance was promulgated by the Governor on the instruc--tions of the President under the Presidential Proclamation of 7th October 1958, therefore it was existing law under the Constitution and it did not need the Provincial Legislature's approval for its continued validity. Therefore, the said Act remained in force up to 30th April 1963.
5. Thereafter, as we have observed, life of the said Act was extended by Ordinances which were duly approved by the Provin--cial Assembly, and by Ordinance VI of 1957, it was made permanent Act and the said Ordinance was duly approved by the Provincial Assembly. In the result, ever since its promulgation from 194' (?) the said Act has always been in. Force, therefore all the orders passed against all the petitioners are valid and cannot be challenged on the ground that the said Act has expired.
No other point was raised.
6. In the, result, we dismiss the petitions but, in the circumstances of the case we do not make any order as to costs.