' MANZOOR HUSSAIN SIAL, J.---Leave to appeal is sought by the petitioner from order dated 4-10- 1993 of the Lahore High Court whereby S.A.O.No,26 of 1993 filed by him was dismissed in limine.
2. The facts, in brief, giving rise to this petition are that Muhammad Hafeez, respondent, filed an application under section 13 of the Rent Restriction Ordinance, 1959 (hereinafter referred to as the Ordinance) seeking ejectment of the petitioner from Shop No,3 forming part of Property No,1-D Shah Alam Market, Lahore on the ground of default in payment of monthly rent, as also that he required the shop for his personal use.
2-A. The petitioner resisted the ejectment petition. It was asserted that no notice under section 13-A of the Ordinance was served upon him and the ejectment proceedings were launched mala fidely for the enhancement of monthly rent. The plea of the personal requirement was also controverted.
3. The learned Rent Controller framed necessary issues arising out of the pleadings of the parties and recorded evidence adduced by them. He, vide his order dated 11-1-1990 accepted the ejectment petition on the ground of personal need of the respondent.
4. The petitioner challenged the order of his ejectment in appeal, which was allowed by the Additional District Judge, Lahore, on 16-3-1991 and the ejectment petition was dismissed.
5. The respondent assailed the order of the Additional District Judge through Writ Petition No,3196 of 1991 before the Lahore High Court, which was accepted vide order dated 8-11-1992. However, with the consent of the parties, the case was remanded to the Additional District Judge, Lahore for redecision.
6. On remand, the learned 1st Appellate Authority, after ,hearing the parties, held that the respondent had proved that the shop in dispute was required by him for his personal use.
Consequently, he accepted the appeal and restored the order of the Rent Controller directing petitioner's ejectment from the shop in question.
7. Aggrieved by the orders of the Rent Controller and of the Additional District Judge, the petitioner filed S.A.O.No,26 of 1993 which was dismissed by the Lahore High Court vide impugned order, referred to above. Hence this petition.
8. Learned counsel for petitioner contended that the respondent failed to prove that he required the disputed shop in good faith for his personal use, the evidence on record was misread. It was further contended that the ejectment petition was filed with mala fide intention and ulterior motive.
It was also contended that the civil suit filed by the petitioner in respect of the disputed property was pending decision and during the pendency whereof the ejectment petition merited dismissal with a direction to the respondent to have first his title cleared.
9. We have considered the above-noted contentions raised by learned counsel for petitioner in the light of the evidence available on the file but find no justifiable ground to interfere in the unanimous decision of all the three Courts whereby it was held that the respondent had established his personal need for the shop in question. Learned counsel could not point out either misreading of evidence or non-consideration of any material documents which might have vitiated that finding.
' As regards the other contention, the mere pendency of the suit filed by the petitioner against the respondent, relatable to the property in dispute, would be of no significance unless it raised serious doubt about respondent's title to the property in question. Neither the Rent Controller nor for that matter any other authority or Court in that hierarchy would automatically stay ejectment proceedings.
' The learned counsel referred to the definition of the word 'Controller' as given in section 2(b) of the Punjab Urban Rent Restriction Ordinance, which runs as follows:-- "Controller means a judicial officer who is appointed by the Provincial Government to perform the functions of a Controller under this Ordinance."
He also referred to the notification issued by the West Pakistan Government whereby all Civil Judges in West Pakistan except those working in certain areas of Balochistan were appointed as Controllers by virtue of the offices which they held. The learned counsel contended that with the dissolution of the Province, the said notification became inoperative and as the new Punjab Government had not cared to issue a fresh notification in this regard, the Civil Judge, who passed the order of eviction against him, was not vested with the powers of the Controller; consequently.
The order made by him was without justification. This contention is without any merit for it proceeds on the misconceived assumption that the notification issued by the West Pakistan Government became inefficacious with the dissolution of the Province. This was not the case as Article 19 of West Pakistan (Dissolution) Order specifically saved all existing laws that were in force in the dissolved Province, consequently, they were to remain alive in the new Provinces with necessary adaptations unless altered, repealed or amended by the appropriate Legislature or other competent authorities. The explanation added at the end of the said Article defined the expression 'existing law' suffice it to say that the definition included all statutory notifications that were in force in the dissolved Province. Thus, the notification issued by the Province of West Pakistan appointing all Civil Judges as Controllers continued to remain in force in the new Province of the Punjab. It was, therefore, not necessary for the Government of the Punjab to issue a new notification appointing the Civil Judges as Controllers under the Ordinance.
10. The learned counsel pointed out that the Rent Restriction Ordinance was applicable only in the urban areas as defined under the Ordinance. In section 2(j), the Ordinance defined 'urban area' as an area administered by a Municipal Corporation, a Municipality, a Municipal Committee, a Town Committee or a Notified Area Committee. It was significant to note, the learned counsel argued, that this definition did not include a Metropolitan Area. As Lahore was now a Metropolitan Area by virtue of an amendment made in the Punjab Local Government Ordinance, it could no longer be regarded as an 'urban area' within the meaning of the Urban Rent Restriction Ordinance; for that reason the Urban Rent Restriction Ordinance was no longer applicable to the city of Lahore and no order of eviction could be passed in pursuance of its provision. This contention is again without merit. Even though the city of Lahore has been declared a Metropolitan Area for the purposes of the Punjab Local Government Ordinance, it does not cease to be a municipality which is covered, as will be noticed, by the definition of 'urban area' as given in the Urban Rent Restriction Ordinance.
The expression 'a municipality' has not been defined by the Ordinance either by itself or with reference to any other statutory instrument. It has, therefore, to be understood in its accepted sense. In Black's Law Dictionary (Fifth Edition) 'a municipality' means: "A legally incorporated or duly authorised association of inhabitants of limited area for Local Governmental or other public purpose. A body politic created by the incorporation of the people of a prescribed locality invested with subordinate powers of legislation to assist in the Civil Government of the State and to regulate and administer local and internal affairs of the community State ex rel. McIntire v. City Council of City of Liboy, 107' Mont. 216, 82 P.2d 587, 588. A city, borough, town township or village. Also, the body of officers taken collectively, belonging to a city, who are appointed to manage its affairs and defend its interests."
' It will be seen that the word, 'municipality' is of wide connotation and in its ordinary sense it includes a Metropolitan Corporation as well. It is, therefore, not right to say that after being declared a metropolitan area, the city of Lahore has ceased to be an urban area within the meaning of the Ordinance.
' In the result, this petition being devoid of merit is dismissed and leave refused.