Bhaskaran, J.

The defendants in O.S.No.103 of 2000 on the file of the Principal Sub Court, Ernakulam, are the appellants in the appeal. The basic facts stated in the plaint are as follows:

2. The plaintiff is a native of Meenachil Taluk. He was working as lecturer in St. Thomas College, Palai, from 1959 to 1961. In 1961, he went to Canada for higher studies. He took is master Degree in Mathematics from the University of Toronto and took his Ph.D. He joined as Assistant Professor in Mathematics and Statistics in Mcgill University, Montreal in Canada and now he is the senior most Professor in that University. The defendants 2 to 4 are the wife and children of the 1st defendant who was working as attender in St. Thomas College, Palai. The 2nd defendant is a distant relative of the plaintiff and defendant also belong to Meenachil Taluk. The plaintiff used to come to India every year and in 1985 he accepted the post of Director of Centre for Mathematical Sciences, Thiruvananthapuram, and from 1985 onwards he used to be in India for six months.

3. In 1981 the plaintiff purchased an extent of 13.413 cents of land in Edappally for construing a residential building. After getting p