65 years on, apex court decides dispute over will

Satya Prakash

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, July 18

The Supreme Court has decided a case that started in 1955 in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, over a will and went on for 65 years at various levels of the hierarchy of courts. A Bench headed by Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul dismissed appeals challenging a 2007 judgment of the Madras High Court with regard to a family dispute that revolved around a will but actually related to a partition in the Naidu family in 1932.

To understand the case, it’s important to know the family tree of the Naidus. One R Venkitusamy Naidu had two sons— Lakshmiah and Rangaswami. Rangaswami was married to R Krishnammal and they were childless. ButLakshmiah had four sons—Bakthavatsalam, Venkatapathy, Jagannathan and Ramaswamy. After Rangaswami’s death, a ‘possession’ dispute started in 1955. Rangaswami’s widow and nephew on side and Lakshmiah and his sons on the other started a legal fight. The wife claimed Rangaswami died after executing a ‘will’. But a magistrate decided in favour of Lakshmiah, but didn’t discuss the ‘will’.

A suit filed in 1958 by Rangaswami’s widow ended in a compromise decree. Two other family members in 1963 filed a suit which resulted in another compromise decree. After Ramaswamy and Krishnammal died in 1976 and 1977, a suit was again filed for partition by A Alagiriswami and partition was ordered by the sub-judge in Coimbatore.

The legal heirs of Lakshmiah questioned the will on the ground that it was obtained by coercion. Their suit was decreed but the first appellate court reversed the findings. Both courts held there was no proof of 1932 partition.