' The facts constituting the background of this application filed under section 561-A, Cr.P.C. May be summarised as under:--
2. The respondent No,1 who is a builder of a commercial medical complex under the name and style of `Al-Amin Towers' on the plot of land bearing No,E-2, Block 10, Gulshane Iqbal, Karachi, invited offers for its sale. In April, 1987, the applicant No,1 booked corner show-rooms bearing Nos. 4 and 5 on the ground floor for running a departmental store under the name of 'Chase'. The applicant No,1 paid most of the sale consideration to respondent No,1 and in consequence thereof the possession of the show-rooms was delivered to him in December, 1087. It is alleged by applicants that respondent No,1 in violation of the approved plan started constructing double storey structure on the compulsory open space/passage/driveway adjacent to the show-rooms belonging to applicant No,1 with the result that he had to file a suit for declaration and injunction in the Court of IXth Civil Judge, Karachi (East) on 24-1-1989 and there is an order of maintaining status quo operating against respondent No,1. The respondent No,1, in order to prevent applicant No,1 from pursuing that suit, filed a complaint under section 145, Cr.P.C. Against all the applicants in the Court of S.D.M. Airport, Karachi, praying therein that the said show-rooms be sealed. The learned S.D.M.
Registered the complaint and secured the attendance of applicants through S.H.O. Shah Faisal Police Station. The enquiry made by applicant revealed that a complaint under section 145, Cr.P.C.
Was filed by respondent No,1 against them, wherein the learned S.D.M. Directed them to file written statement before him. Since the proceedings drawn against the applicants were in complete disregard of the provisions of law and were instituted with a view to harass them, the applicants rushed to this Court with a prayer that the same being an abuse of the process of Court may be quashed.
3. I have heard Mr. Farooq H. Naek, learned counsel for applicants and Mr. G.R. Warsi, learned counsel for State. The latter has supported the prayer of applicants made for quashment of proceedings pending against them under section 145, Cr.P.C. In the Court of S.D.M. Airport, Karachi, bearing No,39 of 1989.
4. It is obvious from the record that the possession of the show-rooms was delivered to applicants somewhere in December, 1987. The dispute between the parties relates to an unauthorised construction started by respondent No,1 in disregard to the approved plan and the brochure for the construction of Al-Amin Towers. There is admittedly civil litigation between the parties in that behalf and the very complaint filed by respondent No,1 makes it clear that possession of the show- rooms is not in controversy. At any rate the complaint under section 145, Cr.P.C. For the alleged trespass on the show-rooms was filed after more than one year and was thus not maintainable on this score alone.
5 It is an established position of law that in cases of a bona fide dispute over the property the parties should take recourse to the competent Civil Court where the point in issue can more appropriately be decided. As observed in Muhammad Bux and another v. Haji Muhammad and another reported in 1968 P Cr. L J 1882, the practice of using Criminal Courts for settling civil dispute is to be deprecated. In the result, the application made under section 561-A, Cr.P.C. Is allowed and the proceedings drawn against them in the Court of S.D.M. Airport, Karachi, under section 145, Cr.P.C. Are hereby quashed.