P.B.SURESH KUMAR, J.

This first appeal has come up before the Full Bench on a reference by a Division Bench doubting the correctness of the decision rendered by an earlier Division Bench in Jose v. Ramakrishnan Nair Radhakrishnan and others (AIR 2004 Kerala 16) as to the application of Section 14 of the Hindu Succession Act, 1955 ('the Act' for brevity).

2. Though it is not necessary to go deep into the facts of the case for the purpose of deciding the question referred for decision and the correctness of the decision in Jose (supra), as we propose to decide the appeal by this judgment, the facts of the case need to be stated.

3. The appeal is by the unsuccessful plaintiff in a suit for partition. The plaintiff is the sister of the defendants.

The parties belong to Hindu Thiyya community of South Malabar. The suit properties belonged to Perachan, the father of the parties. Perachan obtained the suit properties under a kanom deed of the year 1937. The case of the plaintiff, as set out in the plaint, is that Perachan died prior to the Act; that he was survived by his wife Imbichipennu, his sons, the defendants and his daughters, the plaintiff and Karthiayani; that as the plaint