BHOLA NATH DUTTA Vs. RADHANATH BISWAS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is an appeal against the order of the Court below, dated the 15 September 1923, passed in the execution of a decree. Gopinath Biswas, a brother of the respondent, brought a suit for partition of their family dwelling house which was in the joint occupation of all the co- sharers. There was a decree for partition and a Commissioner was appointed to effect it. By consent of parties, the Commissioner made the allotments by which two contiguous rooms under one roof were allotted to Gopinath and the respondent, respectively. There are walls between the two rooms which fell to the share of Gopinath who had to pay some money to the other co-owners as compensation. Thereafter, Gopinath sold the portion allotted to him to the appellant who applied for execution of the decree. Possession of the room allotted to Gopinath was delivered to the appellant by Court. The appellant, however, was not satisfied with the delivery of the possession of the walls between the two rooms as the beams and rafters of the roof of the respondent's room were resting on them and applied to the Court below to deliver to him exclusive possession of the walls by removing the beams and rafters of the respondent as he said he was going to demolish the walls and rebuild his portion of the house. The learned Subordinate Judge disallowed the appellant's prayer, remarking that the walls form the support of the respondent's roof and that the removal of the walls would mean the collapse of the respondent's room. The learned Judge has given no other reason for rejecting the appellant's application except that it would be a great hardship to the respondent if the appellant was allowed to remove the walls. This appeal is against that order and it is argued that as the respondent has no right to the walls which have been allotted to the appellant the prayer for exolusive possession should not have been refused on the ground of hardship to the respondent.

(2.) A point by way of preliminary objection was raised by the respondent, namely, that as full delivery of possession had been effected and certified by the Court the question now raised by the appellant cannot be agitated in the execution proceedings though it may form the subject of a separate suit. But as the question has been raised in execution of the decree between parties to it, we think it is rightly raised under Section 47, Civil P. C..

(3.) The respondent bases his claim to rest his beams and rafters on the appellant's walls on a right which is known in law as a quasi-easement . "The term quasi-easements has been applied to those easements, which, not being easements of absolute necessity, come into existence for the first time by presumed grant or operation of law on a severance of two or more tenements formerly united in the sole or joint possession, or ownership, of one or more persons. "Peacock on Easements, third Edition, p. 343. Such easements will not come into existence where they are expressly excluded by the terms of the grant or are inconsistent with the intention of the parties. They generally arise on severance of tenements held under sole possession or one ownership or on division of a tenement held under joint ownership or possession. They are conveniences to which the law subjects one part of the property for the benefit of the other part. Such easements, therefore, arise on a partition of joint property as they do in the case of the division of a tenenlent possessed or owned by a single person under grants by him. The difference in the two cases is that, according to the law obtaining in places where the Indian Easements Act is not in force, while in the former case a division of joint property gives rise to reciprocal easements in favour of co-parceners, in the latter case such rights do not ordinarily accrue to the grantor except by express reservation by the terms of the grant. But the law relating to guasi-easements, arising on a division of joint property is based upon the same principle which governs the conveyance of a part of the tenement held by a single owner or possessor. The principle is that on the grant by the owner of an entire property of part of that property as it is then used and enjoyed, there will pass to the grantee all those continuous and apparent easements, termed quasieasements, which are necessary to the reasonable enjoyment of the property granted, and which have been and are at the time of the grant in use for the benefit of the part granted: Suffieid V/s. Brown (1864) 4 De G.J. and S. 185 : 33 L.J. Ch. 249 : 3 N.R. 340 : 10 Jur. (N.S.), 111 : 9 L.T. 627 : 12 W.R. 356 : 116 R.R. 267 : 46 E.R. 888, Amutool Rassool V/s. Jhoomuch Singh 24 W.R. 315, Delhi and Londal Bank, Ltd. V/s. Hem Lall Dutt y. Such easements arise in favour of the grantee on several principles as observed in the case of Sarojini Debi V/s. Krishna Lall y. Applying the above principle, which is well established, to the case of partition of joint property, the law may be thus stated : "As between co-parceners, mutual conveyances of the shares allotted to them respectively upon a partition of joint property, whether under the direction of a Court of Law or otherwise, will carry with them by presumption of law the right to such continuous easements as are necessary for the reasonable use and enjoyment of the premises respectively allotted." Peacock on Easements, p. 393 Bolye Chunder Sen V/s. Lalmoni Dasi y, Sarojini V/s. Krishna y. One of such easements is the right of support (including lateral support) which passes by implication of law to a grantee: Dalton V/s. Angus y, and it is applicable to the case of a party wall which belongs entirely to one of the adjoining owners, but is subject to an easement or right in the other to have it maintained as a dividing wall between the two tenements : Watson V/s. Gray y.