RAJ BAJRANG BAHADUR SINGH Vs. THAKURAIN BAKHTI AJ KUCR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal is on behalf of the plaintiff and is directed against a judgment and decree of the Chief Court of Avadh dated 4-9-1946, affirming, on appeal those of the Civil Judge, Bahraich passed in Regular Suit No 1 of 1941.

(2.) To appreciate the controversy between the parties to this appeal it would be necessary to state a few facts. One Raja Bisheshwar Bux Singh the father of the plaintiff and of the defendant's husband, was a taluqdar of Oudh, and the estate known as Gangwal Estate, to which he succeeded in 1925 on the death of the widow of the last holder, is one to which the Oudh Estates Act (I of 1869) applies. Raja Bisheshwar died on 16-10-1930, leaving behind him two sons, the elder of whom, Bajrang Bahadur is the plaintiff in the present litigation, while the younger, whose name was Dhuj Singh, has died since then, being survived by his widow Bakhtraj Kuer, who is the defendant in the suit. Shortly before his death, Raja Bisheshwar executed a will dated 11-9-1929, by which five properties, described in lists A and B attached to the plaint, were bequeathed to Dhuj Singh, the younger son, by way of making provisions for the maintenance of the said son and his heirs.

(3.) The plaintiff really rested his case on a two-fold ground. It was averred in the first place that Dhuj Singh had only a life interest in the properties bequeathed to him by Bisheshwar and on the termination of his life interest, the property vested in the plaintiff as the heir of the late Raja. In the alternative the case put forward was that even if Dhuj Singh had an absolute interest created in his favour under the terms of his father's will, the plaintiff was entitled to succeed to the taluqdari properties at any rate, under the provision of s. 14 (b) read with s. 22 (5), Oudh Estates Act.