ABAID ULLAH KHAN, J.--This writ petition assailing the validity of the order of the President, Cantonment Board, Multan, respondent, dated the 21st June, 1981, directing the petitioner to cease forthwith to hold office of Member, Cantonment Board, Multan and disqualiflying him from being a candidate for election to Cantonment Board, Multan for a period of four years arises out of the following circumstances. Mr. M. A. Niazi, the petitioner, was declared elected on the 6th October,1979, as a Member of the Cantonment Board, Multan. On the complaints received against him the President, Cantonment Board, Multan, asked the Cantonment Executive Officer, Multan, to hold inquiry into the allegations levelled against the petitioner. During the inquiry a photostat copy of a letter, allegedly signed by the late Maulana Mufti Mahmood, Nazim of the defunct All Pakistan Jamiat-Ulama-e-Islam, and addressed to Maulana Syed Ashfaq Ali, indicating that the petitioner was a candidate of his party and that he should be rendered assistance in matter of his election was produced by the complainant. The report made by the Cantonment Executive Officer after inquiry, which was held behind the back of the petitioner, endorsed the allegations levelled against the petitioner including the one of receiving support from the defunct All Pakistan Jamiat-Ulama- e-Islam. This led to initiation of action under section 15-BB of the Cantonment Act, 1924, by the respondent who issued notice to the petitioner upon him to appear before the former and explain his position. The petitioner requested the respondent to supply him copies of the complaints, evidence produced before the Inquiry Officer and his report so that he could adequately defend himself. This facility was denied to him by the respondent who just confronted the petitioner with the photostat copies of the letter allegedly written by Maulana Mufti Mahmood and certain news items published in the daily Nawa-e-Waqt and of the poster advertising holding of a meeting under the chairmanship of the petitioner to be addressed by some members of the All Pakistan Jamiat
2. Although the petitioner denied the genuineness of the letter said to have been signed and addressed by Maulana Mufti Mahmood and his political affiliation with All Pakistan Jamiat-Ulama- e-Pakistan yet the respondent proceeded to pass the impugend order on the basis of the contents of the letter, report of the Inquiry Officer and other material.
3. By not proving the petitioner with the copies of complaints, report of the inquiry officer and the evidence produced before him the respondent would be taken to have denied him the opportunity of defending himself and he would be deemed to have been condemned unheard. The learned counsel for the petitioner drew our attention to photostat copies of some of the genuine letters written and singed by Maulana Mufti Mahmood and by comparison of their contents with the contents of the alleged signature of Maulana Mufti Mahmood thereon tried to convince us that the letter used by the respondent was fake and forged one. He pointed out that if the letter had been genuine the complainants would have made a mention of it in their complaints. Absence in the complaint of reference to the letter, which according to two of the complaints had come to their notice before, renders its genuineness to be doubtful. Be that as it may the impugned order passed by the respondent cannot stand the test of scrutiny by this Court because it had been passed without giving adequate opportunity to the petitioner to defend himself. Therefore, we accept this petition with costs and declare the impugned order of the respondent to be without lawful authority and of no legal effect.