Andhra Pradesh High Court
Judges : GOPALRAO EKBOLE, M.SESHACHALAPATI, P.JAGMOHAN REDDY, SATYANARAYANA RAJU
Chinnappareddigari Pedda Muthylareddy - Appellant
Versus
Chinnappareddigari Venkatareddy - Respondent
Decided On : 12-07-67
PARTITION - Joint Hindu Family - Severance in status - Unregistered partition deed - Admissibility - Oral evidence - Maintainability of suit for partition.
Fact of the Case:
The plaintiff filed a suit for partition of the joint family property and allotment to him of a half share. The defendants contended that there was a prior partition and the plaintiff is not entitled to a share in the plaint scheduled properties. The trial court held that there was no partition as set up by the defendants and decreed the plaintiff's suit for a half share in the plaint scheduled properties.
Finding of the Court:
The court held that the unregistered partition deeds are inadmissible in evidence for proving division by metes and bounds as contended on behalf of the defendants, and that being so, the oral evidence of D. Ws. 1 to 9 is also bit by S. 91 of the Evidence Act and is clearly inadmissible. The court further held that after the severance of status, the parties thereafter cease to be members of the joint family and hold the property only as co-owners. If the documents can be looked into for the purpose of coming to the conclusion that there has been a severance in status and the severance of status is thereby established, the parties thereafter cease to be members of the joint family and hold the property only as co-owners.
Issues: 1. Whether the partition in 1951 between the plaintiff and defendants is true, valid and binding on the plaintiff? 2. Whether the predecessors of the plaintiff and the defendants became divided in status? 3. If so, to what share is the plaintiff entitled and in what properties.
Ratio Decidendi: 1. An unregistered partition deed can be looked into for the purpose of finding out whether there has been severance in status. 2. Oral evidence is admissible to prove the factum of partition, though it is not admissible to prove the terms of the partition. 3. After the severance of status, the parties thereafter cease to be members of the joint family and hold the property only as co-owners. 4. A suit for partition on the footing that the property is still joint family property is not maintainable.
Final Decision: The appeal is accordingly allowed and the suit is dismissed as against defendants 1 to 8. In view of the dismissal of the suit, the decree passed in favour of defendants including those who have not appealed, is also set aside. In the circumstances each party will bear his own costs here and in the Court below. The cross-objections are dismissed, but without costs.
( 1 ) BASI Reddy, J. , being confronted with having to choose between two Full Bench decisions namely, Ramayya v. Achamma, AIR 1944 Mad 550 (FB) and K. Kanna Reddy v. K. Venkatareddy, AIR 1965 Andh Pra 274 (FB), both binding on him, dealing with the combined effect of Sec. 49 (c) of the Registration Act and Section 91 of the Evidence Act, referred the matter to a Division Bench which in turn referred it to a Full Bench.
( 2 ) THE plaintiff who is the first respondent in the appeal, filed the suit for partition of the joint family property and allotment to him of a half share, the first, second and fourth defendants being entitled to the other half share. Plaintiffs father Chinna Muthyalareddy, the first defendants father Nagi Reddy and the third defendants husband Chinna Nagireddy were brothers and were members of a joint Hindu family. Chinna Nagireddy, the husband of the third defendant, died issueless prior to 1937 and so the third defendant is said to be entitled only to maintenance. Plaintiffs father died about 40 years before the date of the suit. First defendants father died 1 1/2 years prior to the date of the suit, leaving two sons, viz. , the first defendant and Chinna Mutyal Reddy who died 10 months before the suit, leaving a widow, the fourth defendant. The second defendant is the widow of first defendants father. Defendants 5 to 7 were added as parties as they are co-owners of items 14 to 17 of the plaint schedule properties. The second defendant having died pending suit, her daughter, the eighth defendant, has been brought on record as her legal representative.
( 3 ) THE plaintiff averred that he and defendants 1 to 4 have continued joint and are continuing as members of a joint family, though on account on difference they have been living in separate houses. The plaintiff and the first defendant have each been separately enjoying portions of the joint family properties for convenience of management for the last three or four years. The plaintiff being unwilling to remain joint with other members of the family, wanted to effect partition and to get separate possession, and for that purpose issued a registered notice to the first defendant. But the first defendant in his reply notice, set up a prior partition. It is the plaintiffs case that there was no partition as set up by the first defendant, and even if there was a prior partition. it was vitiated by fraud and misrepresentation and is liable to be set aside.
( 4 ) THE case of the first defendant, the appellant herein, is that the three brothers, namely, the plaintiffs father, the first defendants father and the third defendants husband, had another brother called Pedda Mutyalu Reddy and all the four became divided in status about 50 years ago. Pedda Mutyalu Reddy took his share and went out of the family. The other three brothers got in all about 40 acres of land in which alone the plaintiff can at best ask for partition. He further stated that early in the year 1951 the plaintiff wanted his share to be separated. Accordingly, there was a panchanama at which 30 acres of land were allotted to each of the plaintiffs the first defendant, the husband of the fourth defendant. On 24-4-1951, the parties wanted to prepare lists to denote the properties which have fallen to the share of each in the partition which was effected about a fortnight before. Three lists were accordingly drawn up, and each party was given one list showing the property which had fallen to their respective shares.
( 5 ) THE lists given to the first defendant and the husband of the fourth defendant were produced. These documents, Exts. B-18 and B-19, are unregistered.
( 6 ) THE second defendant supported her son. The eighth defendant who was brought on record as the legal representative of the deceased second defendant remained exparte.
( 7 ) THE third defendant contended that her husband Chinna Nagireddy was entitled to a one-third share in the joint family properties an
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