Subhro Kamal Mukherjee, J.

This is an appeal against judgment and order dated July 13, 2009 passed by the learned Additional District Judge, Fourth Court, Howrah, in Letters of Administration Case no. 23 of 2000.

By the impugned judgment and order, the learned Judge rejected the application for grant of letters of administration.

The application for letters of administration was filed by this appellant contending that Shrimati Kiran Bala Dasi bequeathed the property-in-dispute in his favour by executing her registered last will and testament dated January 22, 1979. The will was registered in the office of the Joint Sub-registrar, Howrah. The parents of this appellant were named and appointed as the executor and the executrix respectively.

Unfortunately, they did not obtain probate of the said will. The appellant requested them, on several occasions, to obtain probate. As they did not obtain probate of the will, this appellant applied for grant of letters of administration in respect of the said last will and testament. A certified copy of the said will was filed inasmuch as the original will was in the custody of the said executor and the executrix.

The application was filed before the learned District Delegate, Howrah, and was registered as Letters of Administration Case no. 203 of 1994.

Citations were issued; the mother of this appellant, who was the executrix named and appointed in the said will, objected to the prayer for grant of letters of administration. The father of the appellant, who was the other executor named and appointed in the will died on July 7, 2008.

Since the proceeding became contentious, the learned District Delegate returned the application to this appellant for presentation before the learned District Judge. The application was re-presented before the learned District Judge. Eventually, the proceeding was transferred to the Court of the learned Additional District Judge, Fourth Court at Howrah and was registered as Letters of Administration Case no. 23 of 2000.

The mother of this appellant, Shrimati Sabitri Bhuiya, the respondent no. 1 in this appeal, in her written objection stated that the testatrix had no testamentary capacity to execute the said will. The testator was not mentally alert and physically fit for the execution of the alleged will. She denied the existence of the will. She, also, denied that this appellant ever requested her to obtain probate of the said will.

The disputed property is a piece of bastu land with eight rooms of brick-walls and tiled roof with septic privy measuring more or less three cottahs and eight chittaks of land situate at Makardah Road, Police Station - Bantra, District -Horwah.

The testatrix stated in the said will that this appellant was the son of her nephew and she decided to bequeath his property in his favour and named and appointed her nephew and the wife of her nephew, that is, the parents of this appellant, as the executor and the executrix of the said will. The will was executed on January 22, 1977. The testatrix died on January 13, 1981.

Narayan Chandra Das was one of the attesting witnesses to the will. He stated that the executrix was mentally alert and physically fit when she executed the will. He, further, stated that the will was read over and explained to the testatrix and, thereafter, on understanding the contents thereof, she put her left thumb impressions in every page of the will. The will was drafted by one mohorar of Howrah Court, namely, Kali Kumar Sarkar, according to the instructions of the testatrix. The scribe read over and explained the contents of the will and the left thumb impressions of the testatrix were identified by Mihir Kumar Basu. Rabin Nath Das, Sufal Chandra Santra, and Kali Kumar Sarkar, the scribe of the will, were the other attesting witnesses of the will. He categorically stated that the testatrix put her left thumb impressions in his presence and the said Mihir Kumar Basu identified the said impressions