Section 18 of the Hindu Succession Act, which gives preference to heirs related by full blood over half blood, controls the succession of a Hindu female's property under Section 15(2).

A. R. SOMNATH IYER, J.

( 1 ) THE properties which formed the subject matter of the suit out of which this revision petition arises belonged to one Ramaswamiah who had two wives. He had two daughters by the first wife and one daughter by the second. The first wife of Ramaswamiah pre-deceased her husband and after Ramaswamaiah died his junior wife was in possession of his properties as a limited owner since the daughters of Ramaswamaiah were still living. After his junior widow died, one of the two daughters by the senior wife brought a suit for partition of the properties of Ramaswamiah, and, defendant 1 in that suit was her own full sister and defendant 2 was her half sister. A preliminary decree for partition was made in that partition suit and after the preliminary decree was made the plaintiff died. The question then arose whether the first defendant who was the full sister of the plaintiff was the sole heir and the legal representative of the plaintiff or whether the half sister who was defendant 2 was also entitled to be brought on record as one of the legal representatives of the plaintiff. The District Judge was of the view that the half sister was excluded by the full sister under the provisions of the Hindu Succession Act by which succession was governed since the plaintiff died after that Act came into force. It is the correctness of that view taken by the District Judge which is challenged in this revision petition.

( 2 ) THE question therefore to be decided is whether the half sister was one of the heirs of the plaintiff after her death. Since the plaintiff died intestate, succession to her property was regulated by Section 15 (2) of the Hindu Succession Act. Section 15 (1) contains the general rules of succession to the property of a female Hindu. But Sub-section (2) provides for a special mode of succession in certain cases, slightly at variance with that provided by Sub-section (1 ).

( 3 ) NOW section 15 reads:

" (1) The property of a female Hindu dying intestate shall devolve according to the rules set out in Section 16,- (a) firstly, upon the sons and daughters (including the children of any predeceased son or daughter) and the husband; (b) secondly, upon the heirs of the husband; (c) thirdly, upon the mother and father; (d) fourthly, upon the heirs of the father; and (e) lastly, upon the heirs of the mother. (2) Notwithsanding anything contained in Sub-section (1) (a) any property inherited by a female Hindu from her father or mother shall devolve, in the absence of any son or daugher of the deceased (including the children of any predeceased son or daughter) not upon the other heirs referred to in Sub-section (1) in the order specified therein, but upon the heirs of the father: and (b ). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ".

( 4 ) SINCE in this case the property-was inherited by the plaintiff from her father and she had no son or daughter succession to her property was regulated by Sub-section (2) (a) of this section and not by Sub-section (1 ). The resultant position therefore was that the plaintiff's heirs were the heirs of her father Ramaswamaiah. And in order to decide who the plaintiff's heirs were, it would be necessary to ascertain the heirs of Ramaswamaiah.

( 5 ) NOW, before making such ascertainment it would, be necessary to refer to Rule 3 of Section 16 of the Act. That part of the section reads:

"section 16. Order of succession and manner of distribution among heirs of a female Hindu.-The order of succession among the heirs referred to in Section 15 shall be, and the distribution of the intestate's property among those heirs shall take place according to the following rules, namely: * * * * rule 3 -- The devolution of the property of the-intestate on the heirs referred to in clauses (b) (d)and (e) of Sub-section (1) and in Sub-section (2) of Section 15 shall be in the same order and according to the same rules as would have applied if the property had been the father's or th

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