JUDGMENT

Mahmood, J. - It appears to me that the first question which has been referred to us by the Division Bench cannot be decided without determining whether the rule of Muhammadan Law, that a missing person is to be regarded as alive till the lapse of ninety years from his birth, is a rule of the Muhammadan Law of "succession, inheritance, marriage, or caste, or any religious usage or institution" within the meaning of the Bengal Civil Courts Act (VI of 1871). This, I think, is the first and necessary step in the reasoning which would lead to the answer we are called upon to give to this reference. If the rule forms part of the branches of law which I have mentioned, there can, I think, be no doubt that by the provisions of the Statute we are bound to decide the question according to the strict rules of the Muhammadan Law, whether or not such rules appear to us reasonable and adapted to the exigencies of modern life in this country. On the other hand, if such is not the case, the question must be determined according to the general law of British India, The provisions contained in Section 24 of the Bengal Civil Courts Act constitute one of the most important guarantees given to