Bushra Andrabi

‘Why is it called Dewani?’

A query, framed out of genuine curiosity related to inheritance suits filed in the civil courts was met with a swift, confident, and all-knowing response. This generous willingness to transfer wisdom, without verifying its authenticity is a cultural tradition in Pakistan, where heavy reliance is placed on the oral narrative not only in day to day matters but in court hearings as well. With a sombre tone the profound knowledge on the subject matter was revealed:

“A Dewani case refers to inheritance related disputes that can span over decades. The term ‘dewani’ is derived from the word ‘dewana,’ meaning mad man. Since prolonged litigation often drives parties to desperation some do lose their mind in the process. These cases are called ‘dewani’, as the case itself may never reach a conclusive end.”

The above given definition of the term ‘dewani’ may owe some credit to a perception that unresolved cases in courts are directly related to the obstruction is the role of legal practitioners, some of whom, for personal financial gain prefer not to resolve court disputes swiftly. The shortcomings in court procedures only compound issues where the process ends up becoming a prolonged, complicated, distressing phenomenon of litigation, a picture masterfully captured by Charles Dickens in Bleak House:

“Jarndyce and Jarndyce drones on. This scarecrow of a suit has, in course of time, become so complicated that no man alive knows what it means. The parties to it understand it least…”

The oral arguments of legal practitioners in court at times bear a striking resemblance with the oral tradition of transfer of wisdom, which upon research is found to be false and misleading - the perpetually entangled web of inheritance disputes that stretch on for generations may also tempt one to believe the definition of the term ‘dewani’ given above is true, however, delving into the etymology of the term reveals another story.

The word ‘dewani’ originates from the Arabic word ‘divan’, which refers to a register or logbook. Over time, the term evolved to denote a finance department, government bureau, or administration. In Mughal India, the term ‘divan’ became synonymous with government finance, with the chief finance minister holding the title of Divan.

The English East India Company adopted a similar terminology, referring to its revenue administration as Dewani. Further research revealed that the British East India Company’s victory at the Battle of Buxar in 1764 granted them the right to act as Diwan in Bengal, India, collecting taxes and administering the region.

Warren Hastings, Governor of Bengal from 1772, transformed the Company’s approach from opportunistic profiteering to systematic governance, complete with organized tax collection and bureaucratic administration. Hasting reformed the court system, establishing Dewani Adalat (civil courts) and Faujdari Adalat (criminal courts). While Indian officials headed the Faujdari Adalat, the Company’s provincial councils oversaw the Dewanee Adalat. Through this complex process, the East India Company effectively assumed control of the Mughal system of tax collection and judicial authority, imposing a novelexecutive and judicial framework.

Having confirmed that Dewanee courts have no link with madness, the destructive dynamics of inheritance disputes, do play out in courts the way it was played out in Dicken’s Bleak House. Inheritance cases in Pakistan are often marred by complexity. Some cases are instituted in courts without thorough investigation into the claims made. When individuals die intestate, it frequently sparks inheritance disputes. Writing a Will may seem like an issue solver but given the fundamentally greedy and corrupt nature of the human species, even this can create complications.

An oversight by the judicial system regarding ownership of a house property, and acceptance of the inheritance claimant’s document-less oral assertion as valid can entangle an unrelated property of some lawful owner in the inheritance suit. This seemingly benign, but grievous error of the judicial process–where an order is passed without research, regrettably, enables a corrupt outcome. Inheritance suits where contested assets are listed without any proof of ownership may eventually metastasize into insanity, and in some cases the greed of the claimants can degenerate them from individuals seeking lawful inheritance to fraudulent miscreants attacking properties of people not related to the inheritance – a phenomenon Dickens explains best:

“Scores of persons have deliriously found themselves made parties in Jarndyce and Jarndyce without knowing how or why; whole families have inherited legendary hatreds with the suit.”

Concluding, a Title Deed determines ownership of an immovable property and must be made a basic mandatory document for filing an inheritance claim on house properties. Reliance on other documentary evidence like Wealth Statements filed with FBR, Income Tax Returns, Property Tax record may also help identify the claims made and thus streamline property dispute resolution.

Jarndyce vs Jarndyce Dickens tells us ultimately ends not because the dispute is resolved but due to the depletion of funds and deaths of claimants. ‘…the legion of bills in the suit have been transformed into mere bills of mortality’.

John Jarndyce, a sane surviving member of the Jarndyce family when asked who understands the inheritance case of their family responds: ‘I don’t know who does. The Lawyers have twisted it into such a state of bedevilment that the original merits of the case have long disappeared from the face of the earth. It’s about a Will, and the trusts under a Will – or it was, once. It’s about nothing but Costs now. We are always appearing, and disappearing, and swearing, and interrogating, and filing, and cross-filing, and arguing…’

(The writer is an ex-civil servant, studied from Univ of Oxford. Taught English Literature at post grad level in Kinnard College)