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TMI Blog1927 (7) TMI 8X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... lative was a stepbrother named Gurbakhsh Singh, who is the present appellant. If, however, a posthumous son was born, then that posthumous son would, of course, succeed, the household would be kept together, and Gurbakhsh, the step-brother, would have no rights. 5. The story of this litigation, and of various other proceedings, partly legal and partly administrative, which preceded it, hangs upon the question whether such a posthumous son ever was born. It appears clear that a possible attempt to procure a spurious son was in the minds of all parties from the moment of Jawala's death, or even before that. He died on the 19th August 1915. 6. The appellant mintains that no such posthumous son "was born. Almost immediately after the death he proceeded to raise the question. Simultaneously, or almost simultaneously, Bhagwan, the younger widow, disappeared. 7. Every day was of importance for the defeat of a plot, if plot there was, and for the immediate discovery of the truth. There seems to be little doubt that dissatisfaction arose as to the delay of the patwari of the village in taking action. It is a fact that the death having occurred on the 19th August, the patwari onl ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ade was reasonable. The condition of Bhagwan was the critical and conclusive fact in the case. Without any doubt whatsoever she should have appeared, if her case was true; her condition of advanced pregnancy would have been plainly enough established in the course of that enquiry. She did not so appear. The proceedings were delayed. The Deputy Commissioner, on the 13th October, demanded to know what had become of the matter. 12. Meantime events ripened, or were alleged by the elder widow to have ripened, by the alleged birth of a son to Bhagwan in a remote village of an adjoining native state. 13. Gurbakhsh at once took action, and on the 21st October, another application was made to the Collector, which narrated as follows: After his death Mt. Bhagwan Kaur, in order to prejudice my rights, gave out, in consultation with the village patwari, that she was pregnant, whereas she was not at all pregnant. I filed applications in your Court praying that enquiry may be got made at the spot or the woman may be got medically examined, but up-till now no attention has been paid to those applications. 14. Then follows the second stage of the case: But a short time ago Mt. Harnam Kaur ( ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... condly, the deliberate removal from her home and even from the home of her own parents to these two different places in a foreign state was effected with the object of destroying traces of her whereabouts, of making it practically impassible compulsorily to secure her medical examination, of making it possible to lay a foundation for the fraud of obtaining a spurious son and of maintaining thereafter that in this remote place she herself had given birth to it. Their Lordships, in short, agree, on the whole of that part of the case, with the views of the Subordinate Judge. 22. One or two points, however, may be stated in addition. It was argued that the statement as to pregnancy attributed to Bachittar Singh was interpolated by the patwari in the original record of the death of Jawala Singh. The challenge was made before the proceedings, either before the Collector or in this suit, were instituted, and it is striking and suspicious that Bachittar Singh, to whom this statement was attributed, was not called as a witness to clear up the point, or to state upon what information his alleged statement was made. 23. There may be very considerable doubt as to whether the statements made ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... k place in the revenue Courts, and then this civil suit followed. As already indicated, their Lordships see no reason to doubt either the great carefulness of the investigation made by the Subordinate Judge, or the soundness of the conclusions at which he arrived. The disappearance of Bhagwan, and the manifest approval of the co-widow, the refusal by her to come to the Court to submit to a medical examination, or even to remain for a reasonable period in her own old home, but in preference to go outside the jurisdiction of the Court and into a native state, would in any view have thrown the greatest doubt upon the story of her having given birth to a son as alleged; and then the second feature of the case - her continued absence for a long period after the alleged birth - the whole of this appears to their Lordships to be but part of a transaction which was simply a nefarious plot. 28. It must be stated that in taking a different view the High Court went very far, as, for instance, when they say: We do not find any proof that Bhagwan Kaur did, in fact, shirk examination. 29. Their lordships think it unnecessary to repeat the numerous details of the story, but, as it involves a ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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