MISRI LAL Vs. DAULATI DEVI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The legal representatives of the first defendant and the second defendant in Probate Suit No. 26/73 on the file of the Second Additional District Judge, Varanasi, are the appellants in this appeal. The respondents herein had filed the said suit on the basis of a Will dated 3-10-72 alleged to have been executed by one Smt. Bhullan Devi in their favour. The property in dispute is a house property.

(2.) Indisputably, the appellants herein are the close agnates of the deceased Bhullan Devis husband Ram Lal. Likewise the respondents herein belong to a different caste. That appears to be the sheet-anchor of the appellants case for attacking the genuineness of the Will in dispute.

(3.) Broadly put the objections raised by the appellants before the trial Court for granting Probate were:(a) that the beneficiaries (respondents herein) belong to a different caste and that the recital in the Will that the beneficiaries were looking after the needs of the testatrix were absolutely false and were without any foundation; (b) that the testatrix at the time of her death, namely, 3-10-72, was very old, weak and hard of hearing and was not at all in a disposing state of mind; (c) that there were no good reasons for ignoring the appellants and selecting the respondents to bequeath the suit house; (d) that the appellants and the family members were looking after the needs of the testatrix and the respondents taking advantage of their absence from the village at the time of death of testatrix, removed some blank papers and other deeds from the testatrixs house and using the same forged the Will in question; and (e) that the testatrix was a literate person and she used to sign papers, but the Will in question bears thumb marks which were not the thumb marks of the testatrix.