HEMANT SINGH Vs. DUSHYANT SINGH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is a Civil Revision in Original Suit No. 14/78 of the Court of Additional District Judge, No. 1, Dholpur. It is directed against the order of the Additional District Judge dated 27.9.79 allowing the application of the next friend of the minor plaintiff under Order 32, rule 2, C.P.C.

(2.) Dushyant Singh (OP1) minor son of the petitioner Shri Hemant Singh, filed a suit for partition against the petitioner, and opposite parties 2 and 3, his mother and grandmother respectively, in the Court of Additional District Judge, Dholpur on Sept. 7, 1978 through Smt. Vijaya Raje Sindhiya ex - Maharani of Gwalior State as next friend. Along with the suit, an application under Order 32, rule 2, read with Sec. 151, C.P.C. was filed for appointing the next friend Vijaya Raje Sindhiya as interim guardian for the disposal of the suit. The application was opposed, but the learned trial Court under the impugned order allowed the same.

(3.) The petitioner is the natural son of Shri Pratap Singh ex-Maharaja of Nawa and Smt. Urmila Devi. Urmila Devi is the daughter of late Maharaja Shri Udaibhan Singh of Dholpur and Maharani Malvendra Kaur (OP 3) is her natural mother being the widow of late Shri Udaibhan Singh. The petitioner is the adopted son of late Shri Udaibhan Singh, and his succession to the Gaddi of the former Dholpur State was recognised by the President of India. Vasundhara Raje (O.P. 2) is the daughter of Smt. Vijaya Raje Sindhiya of Gwalior and she is married to the petitioner. Out of the wedlock, on 11.9.1973 Dusyant Singh non-petitioner (1) was born. As averred in the plaint, the petitioner is living at Delhi away from his wife and Shri Dusyant Singh his minor son, since the year 1974 and Smt. Vasundhara Raje, the wife of the petitioner, is living in the City Palace, Dholpur, whereas the minor son Shri Dusyant Singh is living under the care and under the custody of Smt. Vijaya Raje Sindhiya. An application under Sec. 12 (1)(a) of the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955 was filed by the petitioner against his wife (OP 2) for declaring the marriage as a nullity in the Court of District Judge, Bharatpur. That application was later on withdrawn by the petitioner. As already stated earlier, a suit was filed by minor Dusyant Singh through his next friend Smt. Vijaya Raje Sindhiya, maternal grandmother, against the petitioner and others. It was stated in the plaint that the plaintiff and the defendants are members of Hindu Undivided Family, and the entire property, movable and immovable, is joint property of the Hindu Undivided Family, and the minor being a coparcener is entitled to a partition. The grounds seaking partition were that the allegations levelled against the mother of the minor in the petition under Sec. 12 of the Hindu Marriage Act amount to cruelty against the mother of the minor, and the petitioner has neglected to maintain the minor and his mother; that the petitioner is alienating the property of the Joint Hindu Family with the sole aim of depriving the minor of his share in the property; that the petitioner has removed valuable antiques from City Palace, Dholpur to Delhi and some of that property has also been sold; that the petitioner has deserted the minor and his mother for ever.