Judgment

JAGANNADHADAS, J.: This appeal arises out of a suit for declaration that the property, details of which are given in the plaint, are jointly possessed and owned by the plaintiff and the defendant the plaintiff owning 3/4 the share and defendant 1/4th share. The suit was decreed by the trial Court. But on appeal, the High Court of Punjab reversed the decree. Hence the appeal to this Court. The facts out of which this litigation arises are as follows:

2. The suit properties admittedly belonged to one Kahan Singh who is the common ancestor of both the parties. The following pedigree shows the relationship :

The plaintiff, Wali Singh, son of Shiv Singh was admittedly adopted by Kirpal Singh. The dates of birth and adoption of Wali Singh were both matters in dispute in the suit. But it was found by the trial Court that Wali Singh was born on 2-3-1904, during the lifetime of Kahan Singh and that he was adopted on 24-8-1918, long after Kahan Singh s death which occurred on 12-11-1906. These findings have been accepted by the appellate Court and are no longer in dispute before us. Kahan Singh left him surviving only one of his sons, Kirpal Singh and two great-grandsons, Wali Singh and Pritam Singh, sons of Shiv Singh. Both Mohar Singh and Shiv Singh predeceased him.

On Kahan Singh s death there was mutation regarding his properties in the Revenue Records. Ex. P.-11 dated 28-3-1907, shows that the mutation was made in favour of Kirpal Singh for one half share and Wali Singh and Pritam Singh together for the other half share. The family appears to have properties in three villages Mahalpur, Bahuwal and Wasuwal. Ex. P-11 relates only to mouza Mahalpur. But it is not disputed that similar mutations were then made in respect of properties in the other two villages.

3. Pritam Singh died on 19-5-1920, leaving the defendant, Sohan Singh, as his sole heir. It is to be noticed that about two years prior thereto, Wali Singh, the plaintiff, had been adopted by Kirpal Singh. In view of these two events, Kinpal Singh brought about mutations in the Revenue registers in respect of the properties in the three villages. The mutations in respect of mouza Bahawal are to be gathered from Exs. D-9 and D-4, dated 1-6-1920 and Ex. D-8 dated 15-6-1920. By Ex. D-9, Wali Singh was mutated for Kirpal Singh. By Ex. D-4 , Wali Singh s name was removed from the register as a cosharer with Pritam Singh in respect of Shiv Singh s half share.

Having thus brought about the entry showing Pritam Singh as the sole sharer of Shiv Singh s half share, Sohan Singh s name was thereafter substituted for that of Pritam Singh by Ex. D-8 dated 15-6-1920. The net result of these mutations was finally to show in respect of the lands in mouza Bahuwal the plaintiff, Wali Singh, as owning the half share of Kirpal Singh and the defendant, Sohan Singh, as the owner of the half share of Pritam Singh. It will be seen that this result was brought about by means of three steps in the order specified above. As regards the other two villages namely Mahalpur and Wasuwal, the entries in Exs. D-3 and D-7 both dated 15-6-1920, which correspond only to the second step have been exhibited.

But it is not disputed that the mutations in respect of these two villages also went through the same course bringing about finally the entries in the Revenue Records in the name of Wali Singh and Sohan Singh as equal half-sharers. The case of the plaintiff is that these mutations were made during his minority completely ignoring his rights and that they are ineffectual to alter his lawful share in the properties. He points out that by the date of Kahan Singh s death he was born but not adopted and therefore he was rightly mutated in 1907 under Ex. P-11 as being entitled jointly with Pritam Singh to the half share of Shiv Singh and that his subsequent adoption by Kirpal Singh entitled him to get Kirpal Singh s half share in addition.

He says that adoption could not divest him of the other 1/4th share which he had