Kasturibai vs Hemachandra - 2023 Supreme(Kar) 1427

Judicial Analysis Court Copy Headnote Facts Arguments Court observation

2023 Supreme(Kar) 1427

IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT DHARWAD BENCH
B.M. Shyam Prasad, G Basavaraja, JJ.
Kasturibai and Others – Appellants
Versus
Hemachandra and Others – Respondents
RFA No. 100016 of 2020, RFA No. 100148 of 2021, RFA No. 100507 of 2019
Decided On : 27-09-2023

Advocates:
Advocate Appeared:
For the Petitioners: L.S. Hottin, C.B. Shankanavalli
For the Respondent: B.V. Somapur, Prakash K. Jawalkar, Praveen Hucharaddy, Srikrishna Lingadhal

Headnote:(A) Code of Civil Procedure, 1908 - Sections 96 and 100 - Partition of properties - Civil Court partly decreed suit declaring shares in certain properties while denying claims in others - Plaintiff and third to fifth defendants claimed partition by metes and bounds in agricultural and non-agricultural lands, while also challenging the validity of a Last Will - The suit's outcome hinges on the interpretation of an alleged partition in 1955 and the execution of a Last Will dated 21.02.2018 - Substantial evidence suggests that the civil Court's reasoning on the Last Will lacked credible attestation, leading to its dismissal. (Paras 24, 25, 36)

(B) Partition - Requirements of a valid partition - The Court reiterated that a partition requires severance of status and division of property by metes and bounds, which should be evident from conduct and revenue records - The Court upheld the civil Court’s decision agreeing that the 1955 partition was valid and thus, precluded future claims for partition. (Paras 23, 24)

Facts of the case:
The appeals arise from a suit for partition filed by the plaintiff against family members asserting rights over agricultural and non-agricultural properties, contested by relatives claiming rights under a Last Will purportedly executed by a deceased family member. It was concluded that due execution of this Will was not proven, leading to the share determination among the surviving siblings.

Findings of Court:
The Court confirmed the civil Court's finding of a valid partition from 1955 and upheld claims for shares in specific properties while dismissing the validity of the claimed Last Will due to insufficient evidence.

Issues: The main questions were whether there was an effective partition in 1955 and whether the Last Will was validly executed.

Ratio Decidendi: The Court stated that the evidence established the 1955 partition as valid and reiterated that insufficient evidence for the Last Will's execution warrants its dismissal, leading to the plaintiff’s entitlement to a share in relevant properties.

Result: The appeal by the plaintiff was allowed in part; the appeals by the other defendants were dismissed.

Table of Content
1. nature of appeals and partial decree. (Para 1 , 2)
2. claims of entitlement and partition disputes. (Para 3 , 6 , 8)
3. family relations and inheritance details. (Para 4 , 5 , 9 , 10)
4. issues framed by the civil court. (Para 11 , 12)
5. civil court's findings on properties and wills. (Para 15)
6. arguments presented by counsel. (Para 16 , 17 , 18 , 19)
7. legal principles about partition. (Para 23)
8. conclusions drawn by the court on partition. (Para 24 , 28 , 30)
9. determination of partition validity. (Para 25 , 26)
10. status of properties post parties' agreements. (Para 31 , 32 , 33)
11. execution and challenges of last will. (Para 35 , 36)
12. civil court’s opinions on property exchanges. (Para 37 , 38 , 39)

JUDGMENT :

B.M. Shyam Prasad, J.

1. These appeals are by the plaintiff and some of the defendants in O.S. No. 207/2010 on the file of the Senior Civil Judge and JMFC, Navalgund (for short, 'the civil Court'). The appeal in RFA No. 100507/2020 is by the plaintiff, the appeal in RFA No. 100016/2020 is by the third to fifth defendants and the appeal in RFA No. 100148/2021 is by the tenth to fourteenth defendants. The parties for reasons of convenience are referred to as per their rank in the suit.

2. The civil Court, on 24.10.2019, has partly decreed this suit in O.S. No. 207/2010 declaring that the plaintiff, the first and third to fifth defendants are entitled to one fifth share each in certain agricultural lands and non-agricultural properties listed in the plaint schedules. The civil Court has also directed the Special Land Acquisition Officer, National Highway Authorities, Dharwad to release the amount payable under the award dated 17.11.2014 in SLAO/LAQ/CR/CR55/2014-15 to the first defendant.

3. The plaintiff is aggrieved because his claim for declaration of share and partition by metes and bounds is accepted only for certain agricultural lands and non-agricultural properties while the similar claim in the other properties is rejected. The third to fifth defendants, who are his sisters, have joined the plaintiff in his grievance against the declaration of shares in only certain properties as aforesaid; and the tenth to fourteenth defendants, who are the legatees under the Last Will and Testament dated 21.02.2018 executed by the second defendant's wife, have filed their separate appeal being aggrieved by the civil Court's finding that they have failed to establish the due execution of such Last Will and Testament.

4. The relationship amongst the parties is not disputed. The plaintiff and the first to fifth defendants are the children of Sri. Govindappa and Smt. Padma Bai, who have died respectively on 02.07.1994 and 29.03.2007. The plaintiff and the first and second defendants are their sons, and the third to fifth defendants are their daughters. The second defendant has died during the pendency of the suit, and on his death, his wife, Smt.Vijayalakshmi, is brought on record as his legal representative. On the demise of Smt.Vijayalakshmi, the tenth to fourteenth defendants, are brought on record as additional defendants because they, who are the children of her siblings, have asserted that she has executed her Last Will and Testament dated 21.02.2018 bequeathing her undivided interest in the suit schedule properties to them. The Genealogical Tree(1) is as follows:

Sri. Hanumanthappa S/o

Govindappa Kademani

Smt. Rindamma

Sri Govindappa

Smt. Padmabhai

Sri Hanmathappa

D No. 1

Sri. Satish

Chandra

D No. 8

Smt. Kasteruvva

D No. 3