Islamabad, December 10, 2019 (PPI-OT): Right after assuming office, Prime Minister Imran Khan, entrusted the Law Minister with the responsibility to ensure justice for common man. Justice (Insaf) remained the key theme and a subject of discussion on the campaign trail throughout 2018. Overhaul of the entire system and people friendly law reforms were being considered crucial for the new government and the task was of utmost importance. Federal Law Minister Dr. Muhammad Farogh Naseem worked diligently on the assignment to draft bills that were beneficial to common man. The idea was to ensure justice through people friendly legislation.
Process of drafting the legislation was completed within 75 days, long before the completion of 100 days deadline. Next step was more crucial one, to work with the opposition to build a political consensus. Since the numbers were not helpful in the senate, realization of the dream of getting nod from the Parliament seemed a long shot. The result was promulgation of various people-friendly Ordinances by the President on October 30th. The purpose of one of the Ordinances is to provide for an efficacious and speedy mechanism for issuance of letters of Administration and Succession Certificates. One of the problems faced by the legal heirs of the deceased is the transfer of immovable and movable property even in the cases where no ‘factual controversy’ i.e. any objection by legal heirs or dispute regarding the identity of legal heirs exists.
Law Ministry has devised a mechanism to establish Succession Facilitation Units in collaboration with the National Database and Registration Authority (NADRA) for the issuance of Letters of Administration and Succession Certificates within 15 days of initiation of application by the legal heir/heirs of the deceased. Prime Minister Imran Khan is set to inaugurate the initiative on December 11 which would enable NADRA to use biometric authentication to issue Succession Certificates and Letters of Administration for the first time in Pakistan.
Procedure of application is simple. The applicant will provide his/her CNIC along with the CNIC and death certificate of the deceased. The detail of legal heirs and movable and immovable property of the deceased will also be provided at the succession facilitation unit. Following the initiation of application, all legal heirs mentioned by the applicant will visit the same NADRA registration centres anywhere in the world for biometric verification. In order to rule out any factual controversy, NADRA will publish the notices in newspapers for seeking any objection on the application. 14 days after the publication of notices in the newspapers, Succession Certificates and Letters of Administration will be issued.
Work on the software in this regard has already been completed. The service is set to be offered at two NADRA Offices in Islamabad and Rawalpindi, Upon the successful implementation of services in Islamabad. The service shall be available throughout the country. Thereafter within a month or so, the service shall be available across the globe, wherever there is a Pakistani Mission. This initiative is an important step towards providing a common man, what rightfully belongs to him. Before this law, it took 2 to 7 years to get a simple Letter of Administration or Succession Certificate by the courts. Now it will take only 15 days. Previously all the legal heirs had to come to the courts in Pakistan, now even if legal heirs are absent, the Letters of Administration and Succession Certificates will be issued. This will save a lot of expense and time and will release a very onerous burden on the courts.
For more information, contact:
Principal Information Officer,
Press Information Department (PID)
Tel: +92-51-9252323, +92-51-9252324
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PPI News Agency