SHAKUNTALA SAMANTA Vs. ANJAN CHAKRABORTY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The concept of a foster child, that is, a foster son or a foster daughter is a fairly new concept in Indian Jurisprudence. It is known from 1997, if not earlier.

(2.) In the case of K.V. Muthu v. Angamuthu Ammal, 1997 2 SCC 53, the Supreme Court has spoken about the rights of a foster child. A foster child according to the Supreme Court decision is one, who has been received by the foster parents at a very early stage of life, nurtured, cared and brought up as their own child.

(3.) This is an application by a foster daughter of a deceased claiming revision of two orders dated 05.06.2006 and 01.04.2008 passed by the learned Second Civil Judge, Senior Division, Barasat refusing to add her as a party in a suit. The suit is T.S. No. 51 of 2005 pending before the Barasat Court. It is a partition suit amongst the heirs of Gopal Chandra Chakraborty, deceased. The petitioner claiming to be a foster daughter of the deceased made an application for addition as a party. Her claim was resisted by only one son of the said deceased, namely, Anjan Chakraborty, respondent No. 1 herein. The other heirs of the deceased being two sons and one daughter have not opposed her prayer for such addition. It is true that the suit is of 2005. An earlier application was made on 8th August 2005 for the same purpose. When the application was taken up for hearing, nobody appeared for the petitioner. However, the application was disposed of refusing to add her as a party. This order was made on 5th June 2006. After and about 1' years, the selfsame applicant made a second application. She argues that because of her absence that order had not become res judicata. An order was passed on 1st April 2008 in the second application to the same effect, that is, dismissal of her application for addition of as party.