In the landmark case Iqbal Singh vs Durga Devi & Ors, the High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh ruled that the statutory right of pre-emption can be waived through conduct and lost permanently if not timely enforced.

The dispute involved a residential property in Poonch jointly purchased in 1976 by Durga Devi and Roop Chand, whose successor planned to sell his share to Iqbal Singh in 1987. Durga Devi issued a Section 19 notice and filed an injunction suit but did not seek enforcement of her pre-emptive right. She later abandoned the suit and claimed her statutory entitlement decades later, after depositing Rs. 40,000.
Iqbal Singh argued that her prolonged inaction and previous legal pleadings amounted to waiver and estoppel. He had made structural modifications in good faith, believing his title was secure. The defendants cited precedents highlighting that pre-emption is a statutory privilege, not a fundamental ownership right, and can be defeated by genuine transactions or abandoned through conduct.
Justice Sanjay Dhar held that pre-emption is inherently weak and must be asserted promptly. The Court noted Durga Devi’s decades-long silence, abandonment of prior proceedings, and the changes made by Iqbal Singh created inequities. With the pre-emption law since repealed under the J&K Reorganisation Act, 2019, the High Court set aside the 2001 decree, allowed the appeal, and directed the refund of Rs. 40,000.
The judgment reaffirms that pre-emption is an exception to property rights and cannot be revived once waived.