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V. RAMASUBRAMANIAN, PANKAJ MITHAL
A. Wilson Prince – Appellant
Versus
Nazar – Respondent
| Table of Content |
|---|
| 1. court's reasoning on the impossibility of tracing the will. (Para 1 , 11 , 14 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 21 , 22 , 23) |
| 2. history of probate application and will execution. (Para 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7) |
| 3. dismissal of writ petition due to record unavailability. (Para 9 , 10) |
| 4. petitioner's claim regarding will destruction. (Para 12 , 13 , 19) |
JUDGMENT :
(Pankaj Mithal, J.)
1. This is a peculiar and an interesting case but with nothing to be adjudicated upon by us.
2. One Rev. Salusbury Fynes Davenport, who possessed vast properties, died on 24.01.1972 at Udhagamandalam, Ooty. During his lifetime, he had executed a Will dated 19.07.1969 appointing respondent No.3 - M/s King and Partridge as the executor of the Will. A senior partner of the said firm, Mr. Chakravarthy Duraisamy, in furtherance of his responsibility as the executor in the Will, applied under Section 222(1) and 272 of the Indian SUCCESSION ACT , 1925, for grant of probate in respect of the aforesaid Will.
3. In the probate case No.15 of 1972, the court at Ooty granted probate vide order dated 29.07.1972 in favour of the executor. The executor filed an inventory with the court on 20.01.1973 which was recorded on 24
Probate case – Court cannot go to aid of such a person who is on a treasure hunt.
The propounder must prove the existence and loss of the original Will to obtain Letters of Administration; reliance on a photocopy alone is insufficient.
The absence of an original Will does not invalidate its probate if secondary evidence sufficiently proves its execution and the delay in application is justified.
Important Point : A will can be proved through secondary evidence if the original is lost, and Letters of Administration can be granted when no executor is appointed.
Alterations made to a Will after execution are invalid unless executed in accordance with legal requirements, highlighting the probate court's limited jurisdiction in granting probate.
The validity of a Will is determined by the testator's capacity and the absence of suspicious circumstances; the burden lies with propounders to prove legitimacy.
The court emphasized that a Will must be validly executed and free of suspicious circumstances, placing the burden on the propounder to dispel doubts about its authenticity.
The central legal point established in the judgment is that suspicions affect the genuinity of the probate proceeding, and compliance with legal provisions for the execution and proof of Wills is cru....
Fraudulent conduct in obtaining probate warrants revocation, as it sullies the course of justice.
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