DUDAM BHARATHI Vs. GAJULA SUJATHA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This Letters Patent Appeal is directed against the order of the learned Single Judge rejecting the appellant's application-CMP No. 6122 of 1998-for condoning the delay of 450 days in filing the appeal-A.S. (SR) No. 19289 of 1998-and consequently dismissing the appeal itself.

(2.) The appellant is the 6th defendant in O.S. No. 29 of 1988 on the file of the Sub- Court, Siddipet. The 1st respondent herein is her younger sister. Respondents 3 and 4 herein are the other sisters of the appellant. Second respondent herein is the husband of the 3rd respondent. The 1st respondent herein filed the aforesaid suit against the appellant, respondents 2 to 4 and also against her father and mother (who are arrayed as defendants 1 and 2 in the suit) for declaration of her title and for perpetual injunction restraining the defendants from interfering with her possession and enjoyment of the suit schedule property bearing Municipal No. 8-2-38 to 8-2-43 (excluding the shop and room sold to one Sri Vanga Raji Reddy). The case of the 1st respondent-plaintiff is that the suit schedule property was gifted to her by her father, defendant No. 1, under a registered gift deed dated 26- 10-1971 (Ex. A-1). Possession of the gifted property was delivered to her on that date itself and mutation of her name in the Municipal records was also done on the strength of an affidavit filed by her father (D-1) and since the defendants were threatening to interfere with her possession with ulterior motives, she filed the said suit.

(3.) The case of the appellant and the other defendants is that the gift deed executed in favour of the 1st respondent-plaintiff was only a nominal one and not intended to be acted upon, and that the 1st respondent-plaintiff herself reconveyed the property subsequently by means of a registered gift deed dated 18-5-1973 (Ex. B-1) to her father, who inturn gifted one shop each to his four daughters. The 1st defendant died during the pendency of the suit. The appellant herein also gave evidence as D.W. 3.