1. RAJA AFRAS1AB KHAN J.- The respondent, Muhammad Saleem Aamer filed a criminal complaint under sections 420/419/406 PPC in the Court of Resident Magistrate Phalia on 4.4.1988 vide Annexure "D". The learned Magistrate after recording the preliminary evidence of the complainant, summoned the petitioners Nawab Din and others to face trial before him. The point raised by the learned counsel is that learned Magistrate was not competent to entertain and decide the complaint, under sections 17 and 18 of the Immigration Ordinance, 1979 and that the only competent Court would be the learned Special Court having been constituted under section 24 ol the said Ordinance. On the basis of this objection, learned counsel maintains that the impugned order may be set aside and the complaint may be dismissed. In reply, learned counsel for the respondents submits that the objection about jurisdiction, may be raised by the petitioners before respondent No.2 for its decision in accordance with law. I have heard the learned counsel for the parties and have gone through the record. It is well settled that objection in respect of jurisdiction of a Court or Tribunal has to be raised before it first of all. Admittedly, the said objection has not so far been raised before the respondent No.2. Let the petitioner raise this objection before the respondent. In case, such an objection is raised, the respondent No.2 shall hear and decide it before proceeding further with the complaint. In case of Muhammad Ishaque Dar Vs. Shahid Nabi Malik etc (C.P. No. 74/94), it was ruled by the Supreme Court, that objection in respect of jurisdiction shall have to be decided first of all before proceedings with the case on its merits. The operative part of the judgment of the Supreme Court is as follows:- "In the circumstances of the case we convert this petition into appeal and direct the High court to decide the question of jurisdiction first before further proceeding in the matter. The appeal is disposed of in the above terms with no order as to costs."
2. Respectfully following the principle laid down by the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of Muhammad Ishaq Dar (Supra) the respondent No.2 is hereby directed to decide the question about his jurisdiction first of all. The needful shall be done by the learned trial Magistrate within three weeks. With this observation, there is no substance in the petition which is hereby dismissed.