The defendant is the appellant. The plaintiffs laid the suit for recovery of the suit properties or in the alternative for joint possession along with the defendant. The properties belonged originally to one Swarnathammal who created a trust on 30th July, 1925; under Exhibit A-l by which she appointed Srinivasa Pillai and his heirs as trustees. Srinivasa Pillai died in July, 1930. He had three sons, Sabarathnam, who died on 16th November, 1949, Manickavachagam and the present defendant. The plaintiffs are the sons of Sabarathnam. The defendant was adopted to his aunt’s husband, Vasudeva, on 20th February, 1950, under Exhibit B-2. The other brother of the defendant, i.e., Manickavachagam, became adopted to his paternal grand-uncle even in 1936 during the lifetime of Srinivasa Pillai. Defendant filed a suit for partition in O.S. No. 13 of 1942 of the properties and in it included the suit properties. Exhibit B-19 is the plaint in that suit and Exhibit B-21 is the preliminary decree. Against the preliminary decree in O.S. No. 13 of 1942, there was an appeal in A.S. No. 56 of 1943 and Exhibit A-30 is the appellate judgment. In the appeal, the suit properties were excluded by c