HANUMAN PRASAD Vs. RAVISHANKAR AND ANOTHER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is an appeal by the defendant against the judgment and decree of the Fourth Additional District Judge, Jabalpur. The suit was instituted by Ravishanker and Rajni, both minors, in forma-pauper against their father, Hanuman Prasad, for a declaration that they had absolute title to the suit house and for possession of the same.

(2.) The admitted facts of the case are that on 12-10-1964 defendant Hanuman Prasad Tiwari married Indira Devi under the provisions of Special Marriage Act. The two plaintiffs were born of this wed-lock. Father of Indira Devi, Shriman Narayan, who was living in village Chhatparo, District West Godawari, Andhra Pradesh, came to Katni and learning about her daughter's marriage with the defendant, fully reconciled with it. A plot of land situated in Vallabh Dass Agarwal Ward in Katni was purchased from one Shri Kumari (D.W. 4) in the name of Indira Devi. A permission to construct a house over the plot from the Municipal Committee was sought in the name of Indira Devi. But, before the permission could be obtained, the building construction had started. On 12-10-1967 Indira Devi died. On 30-11-1968 the defendant, Hanuman Prasad Tiwari, by a registered gift deed, made a gift of his one third share in the house property in favour of his son, Ravishankar. Later on, Hanuman Prasad Tiwari remarried. After he had married again, he tried to have the house mutated in his own name and wanted to sell it. On 6-12 1968 he tried to revoke the gift he had made earlier.

(3.) The plaintiffs' case is that after their grandfather, Shriram Narayan, had come to know about the marriage with Hanuman Prasad Tiwari, he paid Rs. 5,000.00 to his daughter, Indira Devi, and also gave her some jewellery, gold and siver ornaments, as he had done at the time of his other daughters marriages. Out of this amount, the plot was purchased from Shri Kumari on 5-4-1967. Shriram Narayan thereafter remitted further amounts on 21-12-1965, 2-7-1965, 5-1-1966, 21-12-1966 and 17-4-1967 to the extent of Rs. 15,000.00 for constructing the house. The house had beers thus constructed by the money sent by Shriram Narayan. The house was nearly two-thirds finished when Indira Devi died. After the death of Indira Devi, the property was inherited by the plaintiffs, i e., defendant's son, Ravi shankar and daughter, Rajni and the respondent husband. Hanuman Prasad, on the death of Indira Devi, had succeeded to one-third interest in the suit house. He made a gift of this interest in favour of Ravishanker on 30-11-1968 under a registered gift deed. Therefore, the entire interest in the house passed on to the plaintiffs. The defendant, however, contended that the property was purchased in the name of his wife as he apprehended that he may be held liable for income-tax and sales-tax dues and that he had to pay a considerable amount to various other creditors. The plot of the house was purchased from the money borrowed from Diwan Lime Company. Thereafter, he had received a sum of Rs. 25,000.00 from his mother. He contends that the gift deed had been executed with the same object of saving the property from the creditors.