Aggrieved over the preliminary decree passed by the VII Additional Judge, City Civil Court, Chennai declaring that the appellant and the respondents are entitled to 1/4th share each in the suit property, the present appeal is filed by the appellant/1st defendant.

2. For the sake of convenience, the parties are referred to as per their ranking before the trial Court.

3. The plaintiffs filed a suit in O.S.No.745 of 2009, before the learned VII Additional City Civil Judge, Chennai, for partition of their 1/4th share in the suit property.

4. After contest, the suit was decreed and preliminary decree was passed as prayed for by the plaintiffs declaring their each 1/4th share in the suit property along with the defendant.

5. The brief facts of the case of the plaintiffs are as follows:

1st plaintiff is the mother of the 2nd and 3rd plaintiffs and defendant. The suit property was originally allotted to the husband of 1st plaintiff by the Slum Clearance Board in the year 1987. After such allotment, the construction was made by the husband of 1st plaintiff. The husband of 1st plaintiff died intestate on 17.07.1990. The defendant, being elder son of the family, after the death of his fa