' NASIR ASLAM ZAHID, J. -The order dated 22nd December, 1976 of the Officer on Special Duty of Federal Land Commission declaring the sales made by the declarant Mir Behram Khan in favour of the petitioners to be void under the Land Reforms Regulations, 1972 (M.L.R. 115) is challenged in the present Constitutional Petition by the petitioners. It is the case of the two petitioners that they had purchased the agricultural lands in question from the declarant Mir Behram Khan through registered sale-deeds, dated 13th May, 1967 which sale-deeds were executed on behalf of the declarant, who was at that time a minor of 14 years of age, by his father and legal guardian, Mir Ali Bux Talpur. Declarant Mir Behram Khan filed a declaration under M. L. R. 115 in his own name as by that time he had attained majority. In his declaration, apart from other alienations, the declarant had disclosed the alienations by way of sales in favour of the two petitioners made through registered sale-deeds dated 13th May, 1967. The alienations in favour of the two petitioners were found to be valid by the Land Commissioner under para. 7 of M.L.R.
115. However, in suo motu Revision under paragraph 29 of M.L.R. 115, the matter was reopened by the Federal Land Commission, and by the impugned order dated 22nd December, 1976, the order of the Land Commissioner, to the extent it related to the validation of the sales in favour of the two petitioners, was set aside. It was observed that the sale-deeds in favour of the two petitioners were executed and got registered by Mir All Bux Talpur on behalf of his minor son Mir Behram Khan and as the guardian could not execute a sale on behalf of the minor, according to the impugned order, the two alienations were found to be incompetent. We have heard Mr. H. A. Khatri, learned counsel for the petitioners and Mr. Naqi Mirza, who appears for the respondents Nos. 1 and 2. No one has appeared on behalf of the respondent No, 3.
2. Learned counsel for the petitioner has referred to section 362 of Mulla on Muhammadan Law (16th Edition -1968) for advancing the proposition that a legal guardian of the property of the minor can sell the immovable property of the minor if he can obtain double its value. It is contended by learned counsel that the lands had been sold to the two petitioners by father of the minor at more than double the value of the lands in question at the time sales were made. It is in the alternative contended that, in any case, Mir Behram Khan, after attaining majority had not repudiated the sales but in fact had gone further and confirmed the transactions by disclosing the two sales in his declaration under M. L. R.
115. We find from the impugned order that the Federal Land Commission proceeded to decide the revision on the basis that Mir Ali Bux Talpur, father of Mir Behram Khan, was his de facto guardian.
The position in Muslim Law is that a father is the legal guardian of his minor child. We also do not have any material before us on the basis of which it could have been determined whether the sales fall within one of the exceptions to the principle that a Muslim father has no power to sell immovable property of his minor child. Either before the Federal Land Commission this point was not raised or if raised it was not considered by the Federal Land Commission. In our view this is a fit case for remand to the Federal Land Commission for decision accordingly to the law.
3. The impugned order dated 22nd December, 1976 of O. S. D., Federal Land Commission is set aside and the matter is remanded to the Federal Land Commission for decision in accordance with law specially the Muslim Law on the subject of sale of immovable property by the legal guardian of minor. It will be open to the petitioners to raise such factual and legal pleas as may be available to them under the law. The revision will be decided after notice to the petitioners as well as to the declarant.
' There will no order as to costs.