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CHAPTER 6
SUITS BY OR AGAINST PERSONS IN MILITARY SERVICE
PART A -- AMENABILITY TO THE CIVIL
COURTS OF PERSONS SUBJECT TO MILITARY LAW
*
[1. Jurisdiction of civil Courts.-- The persons subject to Pakistan
Army Act 1952 (XXXIX of 1952), Pakistan Air Force Act, 1953 (VI of 1953) and the Pakistan
Navy Ordinance, 1961(XXXV of 1961) are now amenable to the jurisdiction of ordinary Civil
Courts subject to certain restrictions as regards their personal appearance in Court and
execution of decrees against their person and military equipments.]
2. ***[Omitted].
3. ***[Omitted].
4. Authority for conducting litigation.-- When any officer or soldier actually
serving Government in military capacity is a party to a suit and cannot obtain leave of
absence for prosecuting or defending a suit, he can appoint some other person to act on
his behalf by an authority in writing given in the manner prescribed in Order XXVIII of
the Code of Civil Procedure.
In the case of ***[...] officers or soldiers, the following form has
been prescribed for the authority in writing.
"Whereas I (name)-------------inhabitant of village---------------------Pargunnah
----------------------in the District of ----------------- son of ------------------------
of the caste of-----------------at the present rank in-------------------------
Company--------------------Regiment------------------stationed
at----------------------having occasion to institute (or defend) an action for (nature and
object of suit and name of adverse party), do hereby nominate and appoint (name, residence
and caste and relationship, if any) to be my attorney, and I bind myself to abide by
whatever he, the said attorney, may do on my behalf, in the prosecution (or defence) of
the said suit. The said attorney will either prosecute (or defend) the suit in person or
will appoint one or more of the authorised *[Advocates] of the Court to
prosecute (or defend) the same, under the instructions of the said attorney as he may
think proper. In the event of an appeal being preferred from the judgment passed in the
suit, the said attorney is hereby empowered to act for me in the appeal in the like manner
as in the original suit.
Signature
Signed in my presence O.C."
[Vide paragraph 285, Regulations for the Army in *[Pakistan],
1927].
A power-of-attorney to institute or defend a suit executed as above is not chargeable
with Court-fee (vide Section 19, clause (1) of the Court-fees Act, 1870).]
5. Service of processes.-- As regards service of processes on officers
and soldiers, see Order V, Rules 28 and 29 of the Civil Procedure Code, 1908, and Rules
and Orders, Volume IV, Chapter 7, Processes (Civil).
6. Speedy disposal of cases.-- Civil Courts should dispose of all suits, for the
prosecution or defence of which officers, soldiers or reservists have obtained leave of
absence, as speedily as is consistent with the administration of justice, irrespective of
the order in which they stand on the register.
**
[(See section 173 of the Pakistan Army Act, 1952 (XXXIX of 1952),
Section 32 of the Pakistan Air Force Act, 1953 (VI of 1953) and Section 27 of the Pakistan
Navy Ordinance, 1961 (XXXV of 1961).]
7. Priority certificate-Extension of leave by Court.-- When a person subject to
the *[Pakistan Army Act, 1952,] obtains or applies for leave of absence
for the purpose of prosecuting or defending a Civil suit, he is provided by his Unit
Commander with a certificate to enable him to obtain priority of hearing (I.A.F.D. 902).
This certificate must be presented by him in person to the Court. If the case cannot be
disposed of within the period of leave granted, the civil officer concerned may grant
leave for such period as will admit of the receipt of a reply to an application to the
Unit Commander for the necessary extension of leave. The civil officer will at once report
to the Unit Commander any grant of leave sanctioned by him. (See paragraph 288,
Regulations for the Army in India 1927).
8. The *[Federal] Government has issued the following
notification under section 60 (1)(l) of the Civil Procedure Code:-
The 3rd November, 1938.
No. 191/38-Judicial--In pursuance of clause (l) of the proviso to Subsection (l) of
section 60 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 (Act V of 1908), the Federal Government is
pleased to declare that the allowances payable to Officers in *[Pakistan]
subject to the *[Army and Air Force Act] shall be exempt from attachment
by order of a Court in satisfaction of a liability incurred after the 31st December, 1938.
Appendix ***[Omitted]
**
[9. Exemption from arrest and attachment of pay and allowances etc.
(a) Army:- No person subject to the Pakistan Army Act, 1952, so long as he
belongs to Pakistan Army, is liable to be arrested for debt under any process issued by or
under the authority of any Civil or Revenue Officer. The effect of sections 170 and 171 of
the Pakistan Army Act, 1952 and clause (j) to the proviso to sub-section (1) of Section 60
of the Code of Civil Procedure is that such person are exempted from arrest and the arms,
clothes and equipment, accoutrements and his pay and allowances are all totally exempted
from attachment by direction of any Court whether Civil or Revenue.
Under section 172 of the Pakistan Army Act, 1952, persons belonging to the Reserve
Forces when called out for or engaged upon or returning from military training or service
and all officers and men of Mujahid Force and Janbaz Force under section 18 of National
Guards Act, 1973, and Pakistan Territorial Forces Act, 1950, while subject to the Pakistan
Army Act, 1952, are also entitled to the same privileges.
(b) Air Force:- The position under the Pakistan Air Force Act, 1953 (VI of
1953), is precisely the same as that under Pakistan Army Act, 1952. Sections 28 and 29 of
the former correspond to sections 170 and 171 respectively of the latter. Thus the
exemption for persons subject to the Pakistan Air Force Act is the same as that stated in
sub-para (a) above.
(c) Navy:- Persons in Naval Service in Pakistan are subject to Pakistan Navy
Ordinance (XXXV of 1961). Sections 24 and 25 of the Pakistan Navy Ordinance correspond to
sections 170 and 171 of the Pakistan Army Act, 1952. So the exemption for persons subject
to the Pakistan Navy Ordinance is the same as that stated in sub-para (a) above.
As regards pay and allowances, clause (j) of proviso to sub-section (1) of section 60
of the Code of Civil Procedure gives total exemption from attachment to the persons other
than Commissioned Officers to whom the Pakistan Navy Ordinance, 1961, applies. Thus all
persons in Pakistan Navy other than Commissioned Officers enjoy this total exemption and
Commissioned Officers enjoy the total or partial exemption under clauses (i) and (l) of
the proviso to sub-section (1) of Section 60 of the Code of Civil Procedure.]
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