Litigation on Land Disputes in Rural Pakistan and it’s Effect on Litigant’s Family Health

Abstract

Legal litigation on land disputes is a very serious social issue adversely affecting various aspects of family life. A study was conducted to explore the effects of litigation on family health in four major districts of the Punjab—Gujranwala, Hafizabad, Sargodha and Mandi Baha-ud-din—using a multistage sampling technique. A sampling frame was prepared by visiting the tehsil offices and the courts of the selected districts, with the help of lawyers dealing with land disputes. A random sample of 350litigants from the four districts, distributed on a representatively proportionate basis, was selected to provide the required information using a predesigned interview schedule. The results show that the participants face various problems dealing with revenue department and conflict with court staff over the documentation of cases and during court proceedings. Patwari in the revenue department and the court staff are reported by the participants as being involved in corrupt practices. Women were not given their proper share in the properties under dispute. The results showed that longer duration of proceedings adversely affects income, savings and expenditure pattern in households involved in land disputes. Such land disputes and the resulting litigation adversely affected health of the families involved. The government of Pakistan should accelerate the process of computerization of land records. The pattern followed by India could potentially be modelled. Thus court proceedings may be completed within a shorter time frame. Women should also be recruited to the revenue department and the court staff, in order to minimize the exploitation of the litigants, as the women employees were not reported to be not involved in corrupt practices.