RAJINDER PAL SINGH Vs. GENERAL PUBLIC

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Instant appeal is directed against order dtd. 22/7/2014 passed by Additional District Judge, Chandigarh whereby petition filed by appellant seeking letter of administration on account of Will dtd. 26/1/1990 executed by his father Sarwan Singh Dhaliwal stands declined.

(2.) The appellant propounded unregistered Will dtd. 26/1/1990 claiming that the same was executed by late Col. Sarwan Singh Dhaliwal and was witnessed by Inderpal Singh Waraich and one Malkiat Singh. In order to prove the Will, Malkiat Singh was examined as PW-2. The petition was contested by respondent No.2. After examining the evidence on record, Lower Court came to conclusion that apart from suspicious circumstances, PW-2 Malkiat Singh-the alleged contesting witness to the Will has not come out with true version. He was found to be untrustworthy. The Court found that even though in his examination-in-chief, Malkiat Singh claimed to have seen the Will having been executed in terms of Sec. 63(c) of The Indian Succession Act, 1925, but his cross-examination demolished the version spelled out in examination-in-chief.

(3.) Court enlisted numerous facts including the false testimony of Malkiat Singh regarding death of wife of executant Sarwan Singh Dhaliwal, namely Pritam Kaur. He was also caught testifying in contradiction to his testimony in the earlier lis in Civil Court at Patiala. The same was brought on record as Ex.R-1 and Malkiat Singh was confronted with contents thereof.