Judgment

B. K. MUKHERJEA, J. : This appeal arises out of a suit, commenced by the plaintiff respondent, in the court of the District Judge of Bellary, being Original Suit No. 17 of 1944, for establishment of his title to one-half share of the land described in the schedule to the plaint and for recover of possession of the same after partition with defendant No. (1) who is the appellant before us. The suit was dismissed by the trial Judge by his judgment dated 23rd of July 1945. On an appeal being taken against that decision by the plaintiff to the High Court of Madras, a Division Bench of the High Court by its judgment dated the 28th of March 1949 allowed the appeal and reversed the judgment of the trial court. The defendant No. 1 has now come up on appeal to this court on the strength of a certificate granted by the High Court under Article 133 of the Constitution read with Sections 109 and 110 of the Civil Procedure Code.

2. To appreciate the contentions that have been raised before us it may be necessary to give a short resume of the material facts. The land in suit, which has an area of a little over 9 acres, was admittedly the property of one Basappa who died some time before 1