JUDGMENT

Banerjee, J.-The latin expressions onus probandi and animo attestandi are the two basic features in the matter of civil court s exercise of testamentary jurisdiction: Whereas onus probandi lies in every case upon the party propounding a Will - the expression animo attestandi means and implies animus to attest: to put it differently and in common parlance it means intent to attest. As regards the latter maxim, the attesting witness must subscribe with the intent that the subscription of the signature made stands by way of a complete attestation of the Will and the evidence is admissible to show whether such was the intention or not (see in this context Theobald on Wills 12th Ed. Page 129). This Court in the case of Girja Datt v. Gangotri Datt1 held that two persons who had identified testator at the time of registration of the Will and had appended their signatures at the foot of the endorsement by the Sub-Registrar, were not attesting witnesses as their signatures were not put "animo attestandi". In an earlier decision of the Calcutta High Court in Abinash Chandra Bidvanidhi Bhattacharya v. Dasarath Malo2, it was held that a person who had put his name under the