JUDGMENT :

Ashok S. Kinagi, J.

This Regular First Appeal is filed by the appellants, challenging the judgment and preliminary decree dated 01.08.2013 passed in O.S.No.10/2013 by the learned Principal Senior Civil Judge and JMFC, Hubli.

2. For convenience, the parties are referred to based on their rankings before the trial Court. The appellants were defendant Nos. 1 to 5, 7, and 8, respondents No.1 to 4 were the plaintiffs and respondent No.5 was defendant No.6.

3. Brief facts, leading rise to the filing of this Regular First Appeal, are as follows:

The plaintiffs filed a suit against the defendants for a partition and separate possession. It is the case of the plaintiffs that the suit schedule properties belonging to Nagendra Wadekar, who died on 30.08.1979, leaving behind the plaintiffs and defendant No.7 as the daughters and defendants No.1 to 6 being the sons of the deceased Nagendra Wadekar. After the demise of Nagendra Wadekar, the plaintiffs and defendants have succeeded to the estate of the deceased Nagendra Wadekar. The suit schedule properties are the joint family properties of the plaintiffs and defendants; they are the members of Hindu Undivided Family and no partition is ef