MST. RAMRATI KUER versus DWARIKA PRASAD SINGH AND ORS.

MST. RAMRATI KUER versus DWARIKA PRASAD SINGH AND ORS.

The statement made by Mst. Phuljhari Kuer in the 1925 mortgage suit, as a deceased person’s statement against proprietary interest, is admissible evidence under s. 32(3) of the Indian Evidence Act since she consciously made it and the circumstances show she knew it was against her interest. No evidence supported...

Source-derived case information.

Parties
Appellant: Mst. Ramrati Kuer; Respondents: Dwarika Prasad Singh and Ors.
Jurisdiction
India
Judgment Date
24 August 1966
Procedural Posture
Civil Appeal / Supreme Court Appeal From Patna High Court Judgment and Decree Dated December 22, 1961 in Appeal From Original Decree No. 223 of 1957
Outcome
Appeal dismissed with modification
Legal Topics
Admissibility of Statements, Succession and Inheritance Under Hindu Law, Section 32(3) of Evidence Act, Section 158 of Evidence Act, Gift Deed Validity
Evidence Law Hindu Law Admissibility of Statements Succession and Inheritance Under Hindu Law Section 32(3) of Evidence Act Section 158 of Evidence Act Gift Deed Validity

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Summary, issues, holding and outcome

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Parties

Mst. Ramrati Kuer

Appellant

Dwarika Prasad Singh and Ors.

Respondents

Procedural Posture

Civil Appeal / Supreme Court Appeal From Patna High Court Judgment and Decree Dated December 22, 1961 in Appeal From Original Decree No. 223 of 1957

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the statement made by the donor (appellant's mother) in a 1925 mortgage suit was admissible under s. 32(3) of the Indian Evidence Act and its evidential value.
  2. 2 Whether statements in the 1953 gift deed could contradict the 1925 statement under s. 158 of the Evidence Act, and if so, their value.

Ratio Decidendi

The statement made by Mst. Phuljhari Kuer in the 1925 mortgage suit, as a deceased person’s statement against proprietary interest, is admissible evidence under s. 32(3) of the Indian Evidence Act since she consciously made it and the circumstances show she knew it was against her interest. No evidence supported that she was induced to make such a statement. The statement is reliable, as it was made at a time of no family dispute, and overweighs later oral and circumstantial evidence. No categorical contradiction arose from statements in the 1953 gift deed, and even if those statements were admissible under s. 158, they did not diminish the probative value of the earlier clear and...

Court Disposition

Appeal dismissed with modification

Orders

  • The appeal is dismissed with costs, subject to the modification that the appellant is entitled to a half share in one item of property.