JUDGMENT :

L. NAGESWARA RAO, J.

1. Ranganagouda Patil, the deceased husband of Appellant No. 2 and father of Appellant No. 1 and 3 filed a suit for partition and separate possession. The Plaintiff and Defendant Nos. 1 to 6 are brothers. Defendant Nos. 7 and 8 are their sisters and Defendant No. 9 is their mother. The father of the Plaintiff Veeranagouda Channappagouda Patil died intestate in the year 1981. According to the Plaintiff, due to a quarrel between him and his father, he shifted to Navalur and started working in Mysore Kirloskar at Sattur 15 years prior to the filing of the suit.

2. The Defendants refuted the claim of the Plaintiff and contended that there was a partition during the life time of their ancestor i.e. Veeranagouda. The Defendants pleaded that the Plaintiff was compensated monetarily in lieu of his share in the joint family properties and he started residing separately.

3. By a judgment dated 16.11.2002, the Third Additional Civil Judge, Dharwad partly decreed the suit. The Plaintiff was granted 1/8th share of the entire suit properties except Block No. 163. A separate inquiry for mesne profits was directed to be conducted during final partition in respect of lan