Privy Council Court October 1941 Judgments

Raja Velugoti Sarvagna Kumara Krishna Yachendra Bahadur Varu Vs. Raja ...

Court: Privy Council

Sir George Rankin: The questions in this case arise within a Sudra family of which the defendant, the Raja of Venkatagiri, is the head. He is the present holder of the impartible estate which goes by that name, having succeeded to his father in 1937 while the present suit was pending in appeal before the High Court of Madras. The estate is admittedly joint family property though impartible. The two plaintiffs are the illegitimate sons of one Venugopal, younger brother of Rajagopala, the defendant's grandfather, who was a previous holder of the impartible estate. The plaintiffs' mother, though not married to Venugopal, cohabited with him in a manner exclusive and continuous so as to be a dasi within the meaning of the text of the Mitakshara (chapter 1, section 12, verse 2) which confers certain rights of inheritance upon the sons of Sudras if born of such a union. The meaning and effect of this passage in the Mitakshara were much considered by the Board in 17 IA 128 (1) and 58 IA 402, (...