STATE OF HARYANA Vs. HARNAM SINGH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellant before us is the State of Haryana assailing the legality of a judgment delivered by the High Court for the State of Punjab and Haryana at Chandigarh on 5/5/2008. In the judgment under appeal, the High Court set aside the concurrent finding of the Trial Court and the First Appellate Court on the point of genuinity of a Will of one Kishan Singh by which agricultural land comprising of 52 kanals and 3 marlas in the district of Kurukshetra in Haryana stood bequeathed to one Harnam Singh (since deceased). The Will [the English translation of which has been annexed to the counter-affidavitof one Naseeb Singh, filed as and on behalf of the legal heirs of Harnam Singh (deceased)] does not specify the area or description of the land. The disposition in the said instrument is of "all the land which is my self-acquired and other movable and immovable properties located at Patti Dogran Kaithal".

(2.) On the death of Kishan Singh on 15/1/1975 (the date as reflected in the High Court judgment), dispute arose over mutation of the subject-land as the original plaintiff Harnam Singh (deceased) claimed the right over the subjectland on the basis of the Will of late Kishan Singh, executed on 10/12/1974 (the date as reflected in the High Court judgment). He claimed to be the legatee under the said Will. Admittedly, Harnam Singh (deceased) was not related to late Kishan Singh by blood. The former was tilling the land of late Kishan Singh, as it has transpired in evidence before the Trial Court. In the Will, the genuinity of which is contested by the State of Haryana, it is recorded that Harnam Singh (deceased) was looking after late Kishan Singh. The authority of the first instance, on the basis of the said Will, had mutated the land in favour of Harnam Singh (deceased). But the Assistant Collector had turned down the plea of mutation as he did not accept theexistence of the Will. Applying the doctrine of escheat, the land was mutated in favour of the State. Thereafter, the suit was instituted on 29/5/1978 by said Harnam Singh (deceased) seeking the following reliefs:-

(3.) In the suit, Diwan Singh (since deceased), Sohan Singh (since deceased) and Kehar Singh (since deceased) were impleaded as defendant nos. 2 to 4. They appear to be nephews of late Kishan Singh (sons of his paternal cousin brothers). They were made defendants following the subsisting rule of succession. It has not come in evidence that Kishan Singh was survived by his spouse or any child.The defendant no. 2 also passed away but his legal representatives have been brought on records. The endorsement made on the cause title of the petition reveals that the defendant nos. 3 and 4 have also passed away and their interest is being represented by the legal representatives of the defendant no. 2 in this appeal.