' This case be considered as admitted case.
2. Brief facts of the instant writ petition are that the petitioners being residents of Shujjabad City and are aggrieved persons as their children are studying in different classes in Municipal Committee Primary School for boys and girls near Railway Gate, Shujjabad and Municipal Committee Primary School for Boys near Committee Mosque Gulistan, Shujjabad girls were studying in Girls School which building is taken over for construction of Model School for Boys have filed the instant writ petition. Their grievance is that the abovesaid schools are being run for the last more than 50 years which were established upon the Waqf property and are being managed by the respondents under sections 68 and 69 of the Punjab Local' Government Ordinance, 1979. The respondent Municipal Committee, Shujjabad through its Chairman moved Resolution No,11, dated 16-1-1999 suggesting that both the abovesaid schools shall be merged into Boys Model School and two other Girls Primary Schools be merged into Girls Model School and shifted to the building of Municipal Committee Girls Primary School near Mosque Gulistan and the Girls Primary School be shifted and merged into another Girls Primary School situated at about 2/1-2 kilometres away from the present Girls Primary School. In lieu of their resolution the Municipal Committee through its Chairman got two buildings of Boys Primary Schools vacated and resolved to construct two shopping centres in place of these two schools and in this way published a tender notice in the daily newspaper for the auction of building material.
3. Contention of the learned counsel for the petitioners are that population of Shujjabad Town is more than sixty thousands and the present schools are already insufficient proportion to the population of the area although the people have demanded more schools in the town. The proposed Resolution is passed without lawful authority under extraneous consideration to satisfy the ill-designs of certain persons who want to take benefit through conversion of the school into plaza upon the site which is meant for school and the school, has already been running and functioning for the last about 50 years as one of the Hindus has given in Waqf his property for school. This Resolution is also a clear violation of sections 68 and 69 of the Local Government Ordinance, 1969 and against the interest of the people at large, therefore, the Resolution No,11, dated 16-1-1999 adopted by the Municipal Committee/respondent be declared as illegal and without jurisdiction and even the tender issued on the basis of that Resolution also be directed to be dropped and the Municipal Committee be restrained to construct shopping plaza on the site.
4. Learned counsel for the Municipal Committee submitted that the Resolution is unanimously accepted by the house of Municipal Committee and the Councilors are not made party to it. The instant writ petition is not bona fidely instituted as a civil suit titled "Muhammad Saleem Akhtar Qureshi v. Municipal Committee is pending adjudication before the Court of general jurisdiction, under section 153 of the Punjab Local Government Ordinance, 1979 the Government can suspend any resolution, therefore, the instant writ petition is not maintainable. In fact the Municipal Committee wants to merge two schools into one Boys Primary School and construct plaza on the demolished schools to get income to run these schools. The building of the Municipal Committee Primary School for Boys, Railway Gate is 110 years old and it is in delepidated condition and it can drop any time. The expenditures of the school are Rs.8, 18,400 and the students are 287. The expenses of Rs.13,06,550 shows that there is no justification to run these schools, therefore, a new Model School is being built which will be free of fee and the books will also be supplied to the students who cannot bear the expenses of education. The expenditures to bear these expenses can only be met while building plaza on the place of schools.
5. From the perusal of record I have come to know that this Court appointed a Local Commission to inspect the building of the Municipal Committee Boys Primary School Railway Gate and Municipal Committee Boys Primary School near Mosque Committeewala. Besides these two schools the Girls High School's building has been demolished by the Municipal Committee and it is now being built for Boys Model School. Local Commission has placed on record copy of the Resolution No,14 which is passed for building of Municipal School by the Committee and Resolution No,11 is about merger of two Boys Schools into Boys Model School and two Girls Primary Schools into one Girls Model School. Annexure F is a report of the Assistant Education Officer about the building of the Boys Primary School Railway Gate to be in a dangerous condition, Annex. "H" is another report as the place being congested and dirty. Report of the Local Commission is that he has visited the spot on 24-8-1999 in the presence of parties. Both the schools are situated in the most congested area of Shujjabad. Boys Primary School No,1 and Boys Primary School No,2 are on the left and right sides of the main Bazar. The building of Boys Primary School No,1 is 120 years old made of mud and Kacha bricks and its condition is very dilapidated and dangerous. Adjacent to this new building a 22 rooms school is under construction and in this school both the schools will merge while the building of Boys Primary School No, 2 is 20 years old and it is made by Pacca bricks but the floors are not cemented and it is not in such a condition to be demolished, it can only be renovated. The Girls Primary School has been demolished. The proposed place of the Girls Primary School is measuring 6 Kanals and 3 Mamas which is 1/2 kilometres away from the main chowk and city and is under process.
6. I have heard the learned counsel for the parties. Shujjabad being a backward place with the population of sixty thousands needs more schools as these areas generally suffer from illiteracy and poverty. The right to get education and enlightenment through education and knowledge is the fundamental right of every citizen. The basis is when a land is earmarked or is being functioned by a welfare institution whether it is a school or hospital cannot be converted/or allotted in any other scheme since it is meant for public purpose.
7. Learned counsel for the petitioners has produced a photostat copy of mutation whereby a non- Muslim has donated his land for the construction of School Railway Gate which will be demolished ultimately as its building is in a very poor condition and there is every likelihood of its falling to the ground but the land in no way can be converted into shopping plaza as it is being used for 110 years as a school and it will remain as a school. The impugned Resolution is not only a violation of the fundamental rights as granted by the Constitution of Islamic Republic of Pakistan, 1973 but also entirely against the public interest. It is unfortunate to note that a non-Muslim is donating his property for functioning of a school and the Muslim representatives of sixty thousands people are converting the same to the building plaza.
8. Therefore, I accept this writ petition, set aside the impugned Resolution No,11 being contrary to the fundamental rights of citizens of Pakistan, also contrary to the law relating to the conversion of land which is being run over by a welfare institution i.e. a school, to any other scheme or commercial plazas, also set aside the tender published in the "Daily Nawa-eWaqt" in lieu of the Resolution for sale of building material and direct the respondents and the educational authorities that the building of the Municipal Committee Primary School for Boys Railway Gate be demolished and it be reconstructed as a Girls High School. So far as the other Municipal Corporation Boys Primary School near Mosque Commtteewala is concerned, according to the report of the Local Commission the building only needs renovation. This school shall remain' as a Boys Primary School and the respondents and the relevant authority may renovate the same. So far as the building of New Model School is concerned, the respondents may continue building the same but they shall not convert the building or land of both the aforesaid schools into plazas.
9. There are hundreds of people present in Court and they unanimously submit that they also want to raise funds on self-finance basis to get the school of girls reconstructed and rebuilt and for renovation of the second school near Mosque Committeewala they may raise funds under the supervision of the Municipal Committee and get the High School for girls built on the land of Municipal Committee Primary School Railway Gate at the earliest opportunity and get the building of Municipal Committee Boys Primary School near Mosque Committeewala renovated.