HARNAM KAUR Vs. MALKIAT SINGH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The appellants filed this suit for possession of their 1/3rd share in the land in dispute measuring 2069 kanals, 6 marlas. The case set up by them was that their father Nikku Singh was the owner of the said land which on his death was mutated in the name of their mother, Smt. Raj Kaur; that Smt. Raj Kaur after coming into force of the Hindu Succession Act, had become its full owner; that consolidation of holdings took place in the village and the present Killa numbers were allotted in lieu of the land previously held by Smt. Raj Kaur and the other co-sharers. However, according to jamabandi for the year 1969-70 prepared by the Consolidation Authorities, the defendants were shown owners of whole of the land as mutation of the estate of Smt. Raj Kaur was wrongly attested in their favour at the back of the plaintiffs which necessitated the filing of the present suit.

(2.) The contesting defendants denied the relationship of the plaintiffs with Smt. Raj Kaur and Nikku Singh. It was also denied that Nikku Singh or Smt. Raj Kaur were co-sharers to the extent of 1/3rd share in the suit land. It was further pleaded by them that Smt. Raj Kaur had died in the year 1955 and the mutation of her estate was rightly sanctioned in their favour. In the alternative it was pleaded that they being in adverse possession of the land owned by Smt. Raj Kaur for the last 30 years had become its owners by prescription. It was, however, admitted that Nikku Singh was the owner of the land measuring 208 bighas 7 biswas which on his death devolved on Smt. Raj Kaur.

(3.) The trial Court after recording evidence of the parties held that the plaintiffs were the daughters of Nikku Singh and Smt. Raj Kaur; that as Smt. Raj Kaur had died prior to June 1956, the defendants were entitled to inherit her estate under custom in preference to the plaintiffs and that the suit having been filed more than 12 years after her death, the adverse possession of the defendant, had matured into full ownership. Although the trial Court found that Nikku Singh was the owner of 208 bighas 7 biswas of land which devolved on Smt. Raj Kaur on his death yet it held that the plaintiffs had failed to prove which of the land was allotted to the defendants in lieu thereof. As a result of the said finding the suit was dismissed. The finding of the trial Court having been affirmed on appeal by the learned Additional District Judge, the plaintiffs have come up in this second appeal.