INDUMATHI Vs. P.P.R.VISWANATHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Challenging the impugned judgment and decree dtd. 10/1/2018 passed in T.O.S.No.18 of 2013 by the learned Single Judge granting a probate in respect of the Will dtd. 14/12/2001 and the subsequent Codicil dtd. 14/1/2008 in favour of the respondents 1 and 2 herein, the appellants have filed the present appeal.

(2.) For the sake of convenience, the parties will be referred to as arrayed in T.O.S.No.18 of 2013. Brief facts leading to the filing of the appeal are stated below: The plaintiffs were appointed as executors by one Voora Sri Devamma under the Will dtd. 14/12/2001, registered as Document No.111 of 2001 on the file of Sub-Registrar, T.Nagar, and the subsequent Codicil dtd. 14/1/2008. She was the second wife of Voora Sri Ramulu Chetty, who died on 16/1/1941. She died on 11/5/2008. The first plaintiff is the sister's son of the deceased testatrix and the second plaintiff is the brother's son of the deceased testatrix. During the life time of the testatrix, she had executed a Will dtd. 16/7/1998, registered as Document No.89 of 1998, however, the said Will was subsequently revoked and the deceased testatrix executed the present Will dtd. 14/12/2001, bearing Document No.111 of 2001, bequeathing her immovable properties to the plaintiffs and the defendants, besides bequeathing other immovable properties in favour of her relatives. In view of subsequent developments, the deceased testatrix executed a Codicil dtd. 14/1/2008, bequeathing her immovable properties to the plaintiffs and the defendants and other immovable properties in favour of her relatives. By the said Will and Codicil, the plaintiffs were appointed as Executors by the deceased testatrix. The Will dtd. 14/12/2001 was attested by one Mr.S.U.Kannan and Mr.M.Suresh Kumar. The Codicil dtd. 14/1/2008 was attested by Mr.Giridharan and Mr.S.L.Muthiah.

(3.) It is further averred that originally, the plaintiffs had filed O.P.No.73 of 2009 seeking probate of the Will dtd. 14/12/2001 and the subsequent Codicil dtd. 14/1/2008. In the said OP, the respondents 1 to 6 therein were other children of the brother of the testatrix and they had given consent for grant of probate. Therefore, this Court, by judgment dtd. 18/4/2009, had also passed orders granting probate. However, other legal heirs of P.Andalamma, who is none other than daughter of the first wife of Voora Sri Ramulu Chetty, had filed A.No.6575 of 2009 seeking to revoke the grant of probate and this Court, by order dtd. 16/6/2011, had allowed the said application and directed that the Will and Codicil of the deceased testatrix must be proved in a manner known to law and thereby converted O.P.No.73 of 2008 into TOS and by this way, the impugned T.O.S.No.18 of 2013 came into existence.