“The law of the land is also the law of generations.”

In Pakistan, few legal disputes carry the same level of emotional and generational weight as partition suits. A straightforward demand to divide property may lead to a long and costly legal war that leads to drainage of resources, the division of families, and casting long shadows over subsequent generations. The focus here is precisely on civil suits for partition of immovable property and the suffering they inflict through the Pakistani legal system for several decades.

The cornerstone of this area is the Partition Act of 1893, passed by the Imperial Legislative Council in India to manage the division of joint property. This law provided courts with discretion to order the sale of property if physical division was impractical. Its legacy continues across most of Pakistan, except in Punjab, where the Punjab Partition of Immovable Property Act, 2012, now governs such matters. Islamabad Capital Territory, Balochistan, and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa still primarily rely on the 1893 Act. Though these statutes differ in form, their substance and objectives remain largely aligned.

Partition suits in Pakistan derive from a time-tested Roman maxim: “nemo in communione potest invitus detineri” — no one can be compelled to remain in co-ownership against their........

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